


Tell No Lie

by rubberduckz84



Series: The Others [2]
Category: Twilight Series - All Media Types, Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Drama, F/M, Fae & Fairies, Humor, Mystery, Romance, Sexy Times
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-29
Updated: 2021-01-31
Packaged: 2021-03-10 22:55:15
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 35
Words: 142,620
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28405110
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rubberduckz84/pseuds/rubberduckz84
Summary: Paul Lahote used to think nothing exciting ever happened in La Push. Then he turned into a wolf for the first time. After that, it's been a long series of supernatural disasters, though it seems things have quieted down - finally. Roisin is running from her family and a future she doesn’t want, hoping to build a life where the Fae world doesn't butt in with all their talk of "destiny". Being a Summer fae, Forks, WA, seems like the last place anyone would look for her... But when worlds collide... well, there's chaos. But not all of it is bad.
Relationships: Paul Lahote/Original Female Character(s)
Series: The Others [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2080395
Comments: 26
Kudos: 38
Collections: R's Twilight





	1. Prologue

"Oh my god, could you have chosen a more boring place?" the blonde girl in the backseat lamented, her face plastered to the car window as they drove through the middle of the gray, dreary town.

Her blue eyes were wide with a sneer of disgust on her face as she turned and looked towards the two people in the front of the SUV.

"I mean… when I followed you, I thought we were going to have fun," she added before huffing and throwing herself back into the seat, turning to glare out the window again. "Where is the sun? THERE'S NO SUN!"

Melodious laughter greeted her from the front seat as a girl with deep red waves turned around to face her, a grin on her sun-kissed, freckled face and her sky blue eyes lit up with mischief.

"Trust me. This place is perfect. They'll never find us here," she replied. "And you know you don't need the sun when you have me around…"

"She makes a point," the driver, a man who looked just a bit older than the two, said, his dark blue eyes glancing over at the redhead and then back at the blonde in the rearview mirror before he returned to watching the road. "This is probably the last place anyone would expect us to go. And well… we could have stayed in LA if you hadn't pulled that last stunt of yours."

There was a hint of annoyance in his voice as he glanced back at the blonde again, hoping this tantrum didn't last as long as the others. While long used to them by now, he still found them aggravating. She could be rather temperamental. Well, both them when he really thought about it.

It was who they were, after all.

"Okay, how many times do I have to say I'm sorry for that?! And… I mean… even a deserted island would be more fun than this!" the blonde whined, her voice hitting an irritating pitch. "At least that has sun… I knew it. You're punishing me..."

"Summer fae," the man muttered under his breath, earning him a sharp look from the redhead before she turned her attention back to her friend.

"This isn't punishment. And you know we create fun wherever we go," she said soothingly. The blonde looked back at her, still not convinced. "Besides, what's more perfect than a sleepy little town in Washington to create a bit of mischief? But not _too_ much mischief."

The blonde considered her words a bit before huffing again and looking out the window.

"I thought the point was to not be found," the man said, glancing at the redhead with a smirk.

"Oh, please. We can still stay under the radar. This time I'm sure of it," she replied, looking over at him. She then turned back to the blonde. "Come on… it'll be fun. I give it less than a week before you have everyone wrapped around your finger… you know you always have fun with me…"

She began to pout dramatically, causing the blonde to roll her eyes. But there was already a spark in her eyes and the redhead knew she was sold. They had been best friends since they were born, practically. And she knew she could always talk her best friend into anything. Well, usually it was the other way around. But at least in this case, she knew that she could. Finally, the blonde sighed and shook her head, a smile fully appearing.

"Okay. Fine," she said. "I'll give it a chance… And I promise to behave… most of the time."

The redhead squealed and grinned as she turned back around in her seat, looking out at the town as they passed through on the way to their new home.

"Trust me… there's something here… I can feel it. Forks isn't going to disappoint…"


	2. The Boys of Summer

Paul quickly walked into Sam and Emily's, knowing he was the last one to arrive and was pretty late. They were probably waiting on him, which he knew would put Jacob in a pissy mood. Sam would be mildly put out, but wouldn't make a big deal about it in front of the others. No, he'd wait until they were on their own before launching into another lecture/pep talk on responsibility.

Paul had had enough of them, to be honest.

And it wasn't as though he had meant to be late. He would have been on time - actually, early - if the damn Newton kid hadn't wanted to go over the inventory one more time, not trusting that Paul had done it right. Every shift with him was an exercise in maintaining control and calm as Paul wanted nothing more than to punch him. When Marshmallow wasn't criticizing his work (which there was usually nothing wrong with in the first place), he was gossiping (Bella and the Cullens were unfortunately still a popular topic) or hitting on any and every young woman that happened to come into the store (which unfortunately wasn't a lot but still enough that Newton was annoying). Or talking about some sort of scholarship he gave up to the University of Washington to help his family in the store (which Paul seriously doubted).

As Paul entered the living room, he met Sam's eyes, seeing the alpha giving him an understanding yet stern look while Jacob was frowning at him from Sam's side. In Paul's opinion, Jacob was letting the whole alpha thing get to his head. He wasn't even _his_ alpha, but yet the younger man always seemed to try and boss him around.

But now wasn't the time to rehash old wounds, Paul thought as he quickly made his way over to the couch and sat down next to Jared, who had thankfully saved him a spot. The room was crowded with oversized teens as both packs were present. They had started out meeting separately, but Sam had the bright idea of doing joint meetings in the name of unity. They started up while they were dealing with the leech army problem and both alphas seemed content to continue on with it for the time being.

Paul could do with a little less unity when it came to Jacob.

"Now that we're all here, let's get started," Sam said, his voice booming through the room and quickly cutting off all conversation.

Paul listened as he went through a few housekeeping items, namely reminding the younger pack members that the school year was about to start up. Paul glanced over and caught Quil and Embry grinning, the two of them excited to start their senior year.

His eyes then moved around the room, seeing that all the younger members looked eager to get back to school. Paul supposed that if it had been him, he probably would be eager for a school year where he finally didn't have rogue vampires and constant patrols getting in the way of sleep, homework and studying, too.

Now that he thought about it, he was shocked he had even graduated.

Long before he became Paul Lahote, the Uley Pack's third-in-command, he had been Paul Lahote, slacker and trouble-maker. When he wasn't skipping with other delinquents, he was usually getting into fights or making wise-ass comments in class that got him sent to the principal's office every other day or so. His GPA was almost non-existent. Paul was about as far from responsible and honorable as you could get.

So, you could imagine Sam's shock (and well… everyone on the tribal council, really) when Paul phased the first time, officially making him the third member of a pack of spirit warriors that was now tasked with protecting everyone in the La Push from vampires. Then imagine Paul's shock when Sam asked him to take on a position of responsibility within the pack.

"How was patrol last night?" Sam asked, turning his attention to Paul and pulling him out of his musings.

"All quiet," he said with a sigh, repeating the same thing he had said about every patrol he had done over the last several months since the leech army had tried to wipe out the Cullens.

Sam seemed happy with this, though Jacob looked as though he was about to ask a question, but was cut off by Sam. Giving the other alpha a disgruntled look, Jacob then returned to standing with a serious look on his young face.

Paul glanced around the room again and noticed someone from Jacob's pack missing. Hmm, so that's why there was a bit less antagonism in the air, though truthfully it had never bothered Paul. He and Leah were kindred spirits in a way, which was probably why he was the only one that hadn't complained or been bothered by her less-than-sunny disposition.

"Where's Leah?" he asked softly, leaning towards Jared. His now best friend glanced at him with a small smile.

"Dude, she left a week and a half ago. Don't you remember? Wanted to get settled before the fall semester started," he whispered back. Paul nodded, wondering how he had forgotten about that.

Though he was of the mind it had more to do with getting away from Sam, Emily and wolf politics rather than getting settled. But still, a small part of him was jealous. He wished he could leave La Push and strike out on his own. Maybe finally get a fresh start where no one knew about his past and looked at him with a general look of disgust. Okay, so maybe it wasn't everyone on the reservation. Or full-on disgust. But there were still a lot of people who didn't quite believe that he had made a change for the better. That he was no longer the loser he used to be. Or well, at the very least that he didn't want to cause trouble like he had before.

But the truth was, even without all of the disruptions the last year had caused, he would have had a snowflake's chance in Hell to get into a four-year school anywhere. It wasn't as though he wasn't smart - he actually only made bad grades because he failed to turn in most of his assignments. But still, with his track record, he was lucky enough that he could enroll in online classes through Port Angeles Community College. His father told him it was a good move - this way he could work and save up money so by the time he finally decided what he wanted to do with his life, he could afford college and hopefully have the grades to transfer.

At least he'd have Jared. Rather than go off to school, he said he was taking a year or so off to help his parents out with running their seaside resort (which was little more than a collection of small cabins near the beach) to learn the ropes and save up money. Jared planned to someday take over the family business. But Paul knew if he was stuck in La Push with only the younger pups in the pack, he'd lose it. Not to mention, Sam wasn't any better, always with Emily which reminded Paul - yet again - that he was the only older member in their pack who hadn't imprinted yet. At least Jared and his imprint Kim saved the gushy stuff for when they were alone.

"Well, that should be it," Sam said, glancing over to Jacob, who just nodded.

"Food!" Seth Clearwater shouted, already jumping to his feet and making towards the kitchen where Emily had been hard at work filling the table with enough to feed an army (which they kind of were). Everyone else started in that direction, with Paul and Jared falling towards the back.

"Paul, a word?" Sam called out. Paul stopped and huffed, while Jared offered an encouraging smile.

"I'll save you some," he said before continuing into the kitchen.

Paul turned and walked over to Sam, thankful that Jacob wasn't sticking around.

"Sorry. Newton kept me late. Again," Paul said quickly. "I tried to get here as fast as I could."

"Figured," Sam replied, his stern look softening a bit. "How's that going?" Paul snorted softly.

"It's going. At least it's work," he replied. "It was that or clean rooms at the resort, which I wasn't keen on." Sam nodded, glancing towards the kitchen and then settling his gaze back on Paul.

"If it's not working out, you can always work at the garage," he said. He had already offered Paul a job several times now, but each time he turned him down, not caring to work on cars.

He didn't know a wrench from a screwdriver. Or well, okay, so he did. But it didn't mean he knew anything about fixing up cars. That was more Jacob's thing. And well, Paul didn't like handouts.

"I'm good, but thanks," Paul said, hoping this conversation was over. While he appreciated his alpha's concern - and Sam took his pack very seriously, looking out for everyone - he really did want to get to the food before it was gone.

"Your dad says you're starting classes soon," Sam then said. Paul sighed and nodded. Great. He was still checking in on him with his dad. "He stopped by the shop to ask about a problem with his truck today and mentioned it. If you need any help with anything, let me know."

"Will do," Paul replied, rolling back on his heels, eager to be dismissed.

"Go get some food," Sam said, and he didn't have to say it twice.

Paul turned and walked into the kitchen, finding a chair next to Jared open even though there was more than one person standing around the table, reaching over heads for food. As he sat, Jared pushed a full plate towards him.

As he started eating, he tuned into the conversations going on around him.

"Did you hear? Someone moved into the old McLaren place outside of Forks. Apparently they fixed it up," someone said. Paul glanced at Jared, neither of them really caring for the area's gossip.

"How long has it been empty?"

“Dunno, few decades, I think. No, longer. Thought that place was haunted.”

"Idiot. There's no such thing as ghosts," Seth loudly proclaimed, though he looked over at Sam for confirmation, who was now standing with his arm around Emily.

"Don't look at me. I don't know everything that's out there," Sam replied with a smile. Seth then looked over at Jacob.

"Why do you think I would know?" Jacob asked.

"You're always with the Cullens. They seem to know a lot about weird stuff," Seth replied. Paul chuckled and shook his head, waiting for Jacob's reaction.

"We don't sit around and talk about ghosts," Jacob said before shoving more food into his mouth.

"I don't know about you, but I could do without any more supernatural or paranormal events for a good decade at least," Embry said.

"Yea, pretty sure even that won't help you find an imprint or girlfriend," Jared said, grinning. Embry frowned at him as he stopped eating.

"I could find her," he stated. Paul chuckled again, but softly, not wanting to be pulled into that conversation.

"Patience, Em," Quil said with a grin.

"Says the man who imprinted on a toddler," Embry shot back.

"Yea, means I know a thing or two about patience. Do you know how long a toddler's tantrums can last?" Quil retorted, though he was still grinning.

Paul supposed having no imprint was better than that. Jacob wasn't that much better off. Even though Nessie grew and matured much faster than your average human, she still appeared and acted about elementary age. Yea, Paul didn't think he'd have the patience to be a big brother to anyone right now. He didn't even have his own shit figured out.

Granted it wasn't like any of them were aging at the moment. As long as there were vampires in the area, they would all keep phasing. And as long as they kept phasing, they'd remain at whatever age they were when they first phased. He supposed it wasn't all that bad to remain this way - he thought he looked pretty good. At least he hadn't been 15 like some of the others. Granted, they were all hulked-out 15 year olds. And that was sure to conjure up more than a few questions the longer they kept phasing.

Paul couldn't help but glance over at Jacob. He knew the Cullens planned to stay until Nessie was fully matured, that way she could blend in more easily wherever they went. So they had at least another six years or so unless another leech moved into the area, which Paul seriously doubted would happen.

And then what?

Paul shook his head and returned to eating, finding it easier not to think about it. That was probably why Leah moved away too - in the hopes if she got far enough away from leeches, she'd stop phasing and live a normal life. Paul wasn't so sure just what a normal life was like anymore or if he even wanted that.

Gradually, the conversation turned to the school year and the food disappeared. Paul was still hungry, but knew there was food at home. His father had gone shopping yesterday.

"Up for some video games tonight?" Jared asked as they walked out of the house, shouting out their goodbyes and thanks to Emily.

"Sure," Paul said as they started out walking down the lane towards his house.

"You working tomorrow?" Jared then asked.

"No, thank God. Another day of working with Marshmallow and I'll end up ripping his head off," Paul replied, smiling slightly. "The guy's an idiot. Still doesn't understand the computer system and I picked it up my first day."

Jared chuckled, but gave Paul a curious look.

"You think about studying computer stuff. You always seemed pretty good at it," he suggested. Paul shrugged.

"Maybe? Honestly, this is the first time I ever really gave a shit about studying. Figured it would be good to get the general stuff out of the way and then figure it out," he replied.

"Something to keep in mind," Jared said lightly as he looked up at the night sky.

The two walked in silence a few moments, but Paul could tell that Jared wanted to say something more. Even though the two hadn't really spent much time around each other before they both phased and joined Sam's pack, Paul had learned a lot about him. And vice versa. Kind of impossible not to with pack telepathy. And the fact that they were the first ones to phase after Sam and couldn't tell anyone about what was going on at the time. They became quick friends under those circumstances and knew just about everything there was to know about each other.

And right now, Paul knew that Jared wanted to talk about something.

"What is it?" he said, breaking the silence. Jared looked over at him, his eyebrows raised. "Just spit it out."

"Just… hoping Embry is right. And, well, I don't think we'll have to deal with anymore rogue leeches with the Cullens here. But… what happens after they leave? And what if there's more out there we don't know about," he said.

Paul chuckled softly. Jared was always worried about the future. If it wasn't taking over the family business or when to marry Kim, it was something else. Paul chose to focus on the present, finding the future too murky to spend too much time dwelling on it. Because that terrified him more than anything, but he wasn't about to say it. Though he probably didn't need to - everyone had likely picked up on it when they phased.

Though were obviously too afraid that he would kick their ass if they so much as mentioned it.

"I'm pretty sure there's not a whole lot out there that we couldn't handle," Paul replied. "As for everything else, I guess we'll deal with it when it happens. We have about six more years or so before the Cullens leave."

"But still… have you ever thought about what comes after we stop phasing?" Jared asked.

"You've seen inside my head. I don't. Because it's not happening yet," Paul replied.

"But shouldn't we?" Jared pushed. Paul shrugged.

"We spent most of our lives thinking we were human. When you compare… that'll still be a lot more time than we've been phasing - if that happens. We don't know what other bloodsuckers could come around. But, if it does happen, suppose we'll just… settle into it again," Paul said.

Jared was silent a few moments.

"I wish I thought more like you. I can't help but wonder about the after," he finally said with a sign. Paul just laughed, looking over at his friend.

"Trust me, I'm just trying to get through community college without any more interruptions. I'll worry about everything else later," he replied.

"Right. Like imprinting," Jared replied, now grinning. Paul rolled his eyes.

"Definitely not worried about that," he said. Though he knew it was partially a lie. He did sometimes worry about it. But then he would call himself a dipshit and move on.

He definitely wasn't going to be like Embry and whine about it every chance he got.

Jared laughed loudly and swung his arm around Paul's shoulders.

"Right. Why do you need to worry about that when you've got me and the pack," he said.

"Exactly," Paul said, grinning. "And who said I had to have an imprint to have some fun?"

Jared laughed loudly.

"Fuck, Kim's going to kill me if you drag me to another club or party," he replied. Before Paul could offer a retort, he looked over at him. "Don't worry. I'm still your wingman."

"Good," Paul replied. "Now… do you want to do Call of Duty or Halo?"

"Both?"

Paul only shook his head as they kept walking, his house coming into view with two trucks in the driveway and the front porch light on.

"Nice. Dad's home. Means we should have food ready," Paul said.

"Lead the way."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so the more I thought about it, the more I thought it might be cruel to just leave it at the prologue. So going to post the first two chapters as well so our main protagonists are introduced. And then no more until I get at least through Chapter 10 finished written. And I kinda like the idea of reformed bad boy Paul. Well... not completely as we'll see in a bit...
> 
> Thanks for reading and following!


	3. That Summer Feeling

Roisin stood in front of the full-length mirror in her bedroom for far longer than she probably should have. But it was the first day of school in Forks. She wanted to make a good impression. Well, not _too_ much of an impression. But a good one, nonetheless.

She turned slightly, taking in her outfit, starting from her black ballet slippers, up to her skinny jeans and then to the plain, but classic black and white striped shirt. She lifted up her red wavy hair, wondering for a moment if she should wear it up or leave it down. Down, yes. That looked better.

She was happy to note that she looked just like any other normal high school student. Well, for the most part. While her glamour hid what she really was from mortals and such, parts of her true nature still peeked through. It was in the way she always looked tanned even if the sun hadn't been out in days. Or the way that mortals were drawn to her. But really, that was just a fae thing. They were always drawn to fae in one way or another.

"Stop fussing around."

She looked towards her open door, seeing her best friend Mae leaning against the frame, decking out in designer everything - including a pair of Louboutins that she had bought in LA just before they moved up to Forks. Her blonde hair fell past her shoulders in sleek curls. Though her blue eyes were lit up in mischief as she smirked.

"You look fine. Though… bit underdressed in my opinion," Mae said, pushing off the frame and walking into the room, now scrutinizing Roisin's outfit. "What about that dress you got in Paris? Makes so much more of a statement than… this…"

Roisin snorted, taking in Mae's dress that was almost too short to pass the school dress code. And would definitely stand out. You'd think by now she would learn to tone things down, but then again, that was just Mae.

"The point is to blend in," Roisin shot back, now returning to looking in the mirror. "Which this outfit does."

"I thought the point was to have fun," Mae shot back, pouting. The wings that only Roisin and others like them could see fluttered behind Mae in agitation.

"We will have fun. But I'd rather try and stay longer than a couple months before Darraugh finds me again," Riosin replied sensibly. "Stick out too much and we're done."

She shot a look of warning to Mae, who only huffed in response.

"Seriously! I've already apologized for LA!" she shouted, stamping her foot and putting her hands on her hips. Roisin stared at her a bit before smiling and walking over to wrap her arms around her.

"I know. And I couldn't do this without you. Just… let's be a bit more careful this time," Roisin said as Mae hugged her back. Despite her penchant for getting into a bit too much mischief, Riosin could never stay angry with Mae too long.

And it was their nature, after all.

"You're starting to sound more like Sean," Mae said, still pouting, but at least a bit happier.

"Speaking of which, he's probably got breakfast ready," Roisin said, letting go and rushing out of the room. She walked into the great room towards the kitchen.

"You know, for wanting to keep a low profile, you could have chosen a smaller house," Mae chided from behind her. Though Roisin knew she didn't really mean it.

"Seriously? This place was a steal! Just waiting for someone to breathe life into it," Roisin replied with a laugh. "And we all know you can't stand to live in a small house. Think they said something about it being haunted which is why it was so cheap… You should have seen what it was like before I hired the contractors. A beautiful house like this has character and shouldn't sit empty for so long."

Mae snorted as she caught up to Roisin as they walked into the kitchen, finding a tall, dark-haired man at the stove, a towel over his shoulder.

"Mortals… they'll believe anything," Mae said as she moved to sit down at the island.

Sean turned to the island as Roisin sat, a smirk on his face and a frying pan in his hands.

"Sunny side up. Just what my growing girls need," he replied flippantly as he shoveled the eggs onto their two plates, which already had a plethora of fruit. Roisin rolled her eyes but picked up her fork and started eating. "What? I'm playing uncle this time. Need to get into character."

"Uncle? Thought we were going with guardian as usual," Roisin replied, a bit curious.

"When I went in to enroll you guys, the secretary misconstrued that I was your uncle and I failed to correct her," he replied. "As long as no one asks me directly, I'm okay. Even then, I can get around it." He then winked at Riosin. "You forget how much experience I have dealing with this sort of thing."

Roisin chuckled, rolling her eyes.

"So… you ready?" he then asked, putting the pan down and turning to lean against the island on the other side, his dark eyes fixed on Roisin.

"Yes," she said lightly, though she felt her heart pick up slightly.

Truthfully, she wasn't completely sure why she chose Forks. At first when it became apparent that they needed to move yet again, she had opened a map of the U.S. and closed her eyes, putting her finger down on a random spot. But as soon as she opened her eyes and saw she was pointing at Forks, a feeling settled in that they were supposed to be there.

The fae were always big on fate and destiny - her own parents had told her since she could remember that she was meant to be a queen, though she had never taken much stock in it since her older brother Darraugh was next in line. But as she started looking into the small town, she felt more and more that there was a reason for them to be here. She still didn't understand why, but figured maybe they would figure it out in time. Or maybe it was nothing.

She was, after all, only here to fight her so-called destiny.

"I don't understand why we have to go to high school again," she heard Mae complain. "Couldn't you have chosen a university? Those parties are so much more fun."

Roisin sighed and looked over at her best friend as she continued complaining. She most definitely was a bit more whiney this time, but hopefully Mae would start to settle into their new home. Roisin missed the days when they didn't have to move so much, but they had been jumping around for the better part of a 100 years now, so had thankfully gotten a good system in place. Though that was thanks in large part to Sean.

Roisin and Mae had met the solitary fae shortly after they left the Summer Court while wandering around London. He hadn't known who they were but had quickly recognized that Roisin was royalty. Still, he felt bad for their lack of knowledge in surviving in the mortal world and took them under his wing all the same, quickly becoming a mentor and then older brother to Roisin. Which she was eternally grateful for, especially considering her own had turned into a rather large douche. It was as though once he had turned 150, he changed from a kind, warm fae that was often her partner in crime to an overserious monarch-in-the-making who cared only about duty. She couldn't blame him completely, knowing the pressure that was on him, but he still hadn't stood up for her when it counted. No, he had taken their parents' side.

"I am NOT changing!" Mae screeched, snapping Roisin out of her reverie. She looked over at her best friend, seeing her eyes blazing and her normally cherubic face distorted in rage.

"Mae… we've been over this. It's a small town. That dress is going to get too much attention," Sean said with a sigh.

"Maybe I want attention?" Mae shot back, jutting her chin in the air. "And who are you to tell me what to do, Shadow fae?"

Roisin huffed and rolled her eyes. Every argument, Mae just _had_ to bring that up. Though thankfully Sean was long used to it, his expression not changing save for a slightly flaring of his nostrils.

"How many times do I have to tell you, this isn't the Summer Court, little one," Sean replied, fighting off a smirk. Riosin groaned as Mae bellowed in anger. She then turned to Roisin.

"You're going to let him get away with that?!" she shouted, pointing at him. Roisin sighed and shook her head. Some things would never change, it seemed. Like Mae wanting her to boss everyone around.

"He makes a point, Mae. We are trying to keep things low-key," Roisin said cautiously. It only seemed to inflame the fae even more as she hopped off her stool and stomped.

"You're supposed to be on MY SIDE!" Mae shouted as she stormed out of the kitchen, likely going upstairs to her room to begrudgingly change.

"You know Mae. By the time you guys get to school, she'll be back to her usual, fluttery self," Sean said casually, reaching for Mae's plate.

"I'm sorry she keeps doing that," Roisin apologized. Sean shot her a smile.

"You act as though she's the first court fae to try and insult me," he said with a chuckle.

"But you're not like that anymore. And we're not court fae anymore," Roisin pushed. Sean stopped and stared at her a moment before sighing and turning to start on the dishes.

"I'm not ashamed, Roisin. I was Shadow Court for a long time. Born into it," he said. "It doesn't bother me." Roisin didn't say anything, just sat wondering what she could say to make this better. Sean glanced at her and chuckled. "Go. You need to get your things and then check on Mae, otherwise you _will_ be late. Have a fun day at school. I'm fine."

Roisin pushed up from her stool and nodded, turning and leaving the kitchen. As soon as she reached her room and bent down to pick up her backpack, she felt the flutter of excitement settle into her stomach again.

This was a new start in a new town. She wasn't about to let anything ruin that.

****

"Hmm, looks like this dump isn't a total bust," Mae said, already smiling and waving flippantly at a few of the mortal boys mingling outside the high school as they walked through the parking lot.

She was dressed in a far more subdued loose gray smock dress and black tights, though refused to give up the Loubitons.

"Told you," Roisin breathed, already taking note of the attention they were getting. While yes, the point was to blend in, she still expected a bit of attention as small towns didn't usually get a ton of new students.

"Sorry I doubted you," Mae said, looping her arm through Roisin's and grinning at her. "But you know what we need to do to solidify our ranking in this school?" She waggled her eyebrows.

"No, Mae. Not yet," Roisin said with a chuckle. Mae pouted and fluttered her eyelashes.

"Please? For me?" she begged.

"We'll see. Probably should meet people before we go planning a party," Roisin replied.

"Oh, that'll be easy," Mae said, already looking around.

"Hi! You guys must be the new kids," a girl with long, wavy dark hair said a bit too enthusiastically as she hopped in front of the two fae, bringing them to a halt. She was rather normal by mortal standards, but Roisin could see warmth in her brown eyes and immediately felt like she was going to like her. "I'm Tara. I was told to show you around."

Mae glanced at Roisin and then looked around at the other kids, already set on ignoring the poor mortal girl. Probably because she didn't like her outfit or something ridiculous like that.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Roisin and this is Mae," she said politely.

"Well, hello there," Mae crooned. Roisin glanced over, noticing that a few football players had already made their way over to them. She had to chuckle. Seemed her best friend was wasting no time. "What's your name?"

"Josh. And this is Mark and Alex."

"I'm Mae and this is Roisin."

Already they were falling under Mae's spell, a matching set of goofy grins coming over their faces. While all fae held a certain allure to humans, Summer fae tended to enjoy it more than some of the other courts. And Mae certainly was your typical Summer fae - angry one second, flirting the next, and never taking anything seriously.

Roisin, on the other hand, knew to temper herself.

"Mae, we should get our schedules," Roisin said. As amusing as it was to watch Mae at times, they did need to try and get to class on time.

"Right, Ro. Any of you able to show us to the office?" Mae asked, tossing her curls over her shoulder.

"Oh, that's what I-"

"Yea, this way," Josh said, already leading Mae towards the school building. Roisin offered Tara an apologetic smile and made a mental note to try and talk to her if they ended up in the same class at some point.

"So, what fun is there to have around Forks?" Roisin heard Mae ask.

"Oh, there's plenty…"

****

Roisin supposed the first half of the day went smoothly. Mae nearly threw another fit in the office when she saw they weren't in every class together, and though Roisin was tempted to give in and charm the secretary into changing their schedules around, she stood her ground. After 100 years of near-constant togetherness, it was time they tried to branch out on their own a bit.

Granted, nearly every class they did have together, Mae was causing small disruptions. One class she caused the whiteboard marker to keep falling off the teacher's desk and roll across the floor. In another, she made the teacher "accidentally" write "ass" on the board instead of "class" much to the enjoyment of the other students. Roisin had given her warning looks, but it still didn't seem to deter her.

Now during lunch, Roisin was doing her best to make friends with everyone, while Mae had easily zeroed in on the popular crowd. Their table had filled up quickly with an eclectic mix - Mae flirted with Josh, while simultaneously ingratiating herself with the so-called Queen Bee of the school, Carly, and her two friends. Roisin kept an eye on her, though was chatting about the school newspaper with Tara and her two friends, Trey and Megan, thinking she might like to join.

"Wait, seriously? You're at the old McLaren house?" Carly asked loudly, her eyes wide as she leaned towards Mae. "Isn't that place haunted?"

"Oh my god, people will believe anything," Mae said, rolling her eyes, though she smirked as she glanced at Roisin. "We fixed it up. You should come by and see it sometime. Got our own private theater room and everything."

Roisin sighed and looked down at her salad, knowing exactly what Mae was doing. She had hoped to get a bit more settled in at Forks before the increasingly troublesome fae started into any _real_ shenanigans. Though Roisin was determined that this time around, she would not let things get out of control.

They did not need another LA situation.

"We should talk to Sean first," Roisin said, glancing at Mae cautiously.

"Oh, please, you know as well as I do that he'll be okay with it," Mae said, chuckling.

"Who's that?" Josh asked, immediately frowning. Mae smiled at him as she leaned closer and patted his arm.

"Don't worry about him, doll," she replied, winking at him. The football player relaxed.

"You know, I've always thought you could host some killer parties out there," Carly said after glancing at her friends. Once again, Mae glanced at Roisin, a small smile on her face letting her know that this was completely her doing. "You should totally have one. Oo! And we can come early and help. Maybe even stay over afterwards."

"Yes, we should!" Mae said, giggling and clapping her hands. "It would be the perfect way to introduce ourselves to Forks and get the school year off right." Though she turned to Roisin, silently begging her to agree to the party.

Roisin knew that she could put an end to the idea in a heartbeat if she really wanted to. Perks of being a royal fae meant that she could overpower most other fae - those that weren't royal, anyway. And well, Mae still deferred to her on all decisions even though Roisin had long ago left the royal life. But the more she thought about it, the more she realized that she kind of wanted to go along with it. Once again, the feeling that there was something to discover came over her. And besides, they only got in trouble last time because the parties got out of hand. Surely if she was watching carefully, everything would be just fine. And it's not like there were any other fae in this area besides them.

Just how much trouble could a bunch of mortal teenagers get into anyway?

"You know, I think you're right. It would be fun," Roisin said, starting to smile. Mae's face lit up as she turned to Carly and Josh, their half of the table immediately starting up plans. Roisin turned back to Tara and the others.

"You guys are going to come too, right?" she asked. Tara, Trey and Megan all smiled and nodded eagerly.

"Yea, we're not about to miss out on a party at the old McLaren place," Tara said with a snort. "That place is almost as famous as the Cullens."

"The who?" Roisin asked.

"Oh my god, they were totes the most popular - er, I mean… Totally gorgeous, but… so weird," Carly said. Tara chuckled.

"Only because none of the guys would look at you," she replied. Carly narrowed her eyes at her across the table then turned to Mae, now pretending as though the other side didn't exist.

"Right, so there was this family that lived here for a few years. Super rich. Super hot. And super mysterious," she explained. "All adopted, but four of them were dating each other. They never hung out with anyone but themselves, until some boring girl from Phoenix-"

"Bella Swan. The police chief's daughter," Tara interjected. Carly huffed and continued.

"Right, Swan. So, Edward-"

"Whom Carly was in love with all throughout freshman year," Tara said, once again interrupting.

"Would you shut up and let me tell the damn story!" Carly shouted, glaring at the other girl.

Roisin glanced at Mae, and saw her thoroughly enjoying the exchange and wondered if this was her doing as well. She always did love a bit of drama. Or well, a lot of drama.

Tara motioned for her to continue.

"Anyway, so Edward starts dating Bella and all, blah, blah. Then they get married - right after they graduate. Which is so weird. Who even does that anymore? She was probably pregnant but we'll never know because they up and moved away without a word," Carly said. "But yea, they were the last outsiders in town. But I can already tell you guys are going to be so much cooler than they ever were."

Tara snorted again, but managed to get her laughter under control. Roisin glanced at her and then looked at Mae.

"Oh, I can guarantee that. For one, we hate seclusion," Mae said, winking at Roisin.

Dear goddess, she seriously hoped this wasn't about to be another LA.

"Right, well, I'm going to get to Physics, I think," Roisin said, already getting ready to leave. Lunch was almost over and she seriously did want to make a good impression on her teachers, even if it didn't really matter in the long run.

"Can't you skip? Carly and I are skipping history," Mae said, pouting. Roisin sighed and fought off the urge to tell her not to do it.

Wasn't it her idea to get Mae to do more things on her own?

"Sorry, I actually like Physics," Roisin said, standing.

"We'll go with you. Got that class next," Tara said as she, Trey and Megan all started packing up their things.

"See you in English," Roisin said, smiling at Mae, though her eyes held a certain warning.

"Sure," Mae said, already turning back to her conversation.

As they started taking their trays over to the dumping station, Roisin clearly heard Carly, even though she was sure the mortal girl had lowered her voice so that she wouldn't.

"Is she always so boring?"

"Oh trust me, just need to get her in the right mood," Mae replied. Roisin rolled her eyes.

Okay, maybe Forks wasn't going to be as easy an adjustment for Mae as she thought it would be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So there you go! We now meet our fae protagonist. Been having fun with this. It's a bit of a mix of influences. A decent amount of Wicked Lovely, some tradition folklore, and a bit of my own imagination. Looking forward to diving into the rest of the story. But again, not posting again until I get at least 10 chapters written, so check back in a few days or at the most a week for another update!
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	4. Pocketful of Sunshine

Paul sighed as he continued arranging a display of flashlights while Mike Newton kept up a steady stream of conversation from where he was sitting behind the register flipping through a magazine, not even bothering to help. It's what he had been doing pretty much all day, only stopping occasionally to hand out orders to Paul.

Paul just grit his teeth and said nothing, grunting noncommittally whenever a response of some sort was warranted. So far, Mike had yet to catch on that he wasn't actually paying attention to whatever the hell he was saying.

Just a couple more hours and then he could leave. Though as much as he wanted to go straight home, he had to go to Sam's for another meeting. Hopefully he wouldn't be late this time. And honestly, it was worth it for Emily's cooking. While Paul and his dad got by, they had nothing on her.

"Oh, and apparently someone's moved into the McLaren house," Mike said, the first thing that Paul seemed to register. Though part of him wished he hadn't.

"Yea, heard that," he replied, fighting to keep his tone casual and not let the irritation take over.

It was all the younger pack members could talk about since school started up a few weeks ago. Apparently the two girls who moved in had held some sort of massive party the first week of school, inviting just about everyone from Forks High as well as La Push and making them now the most popular teens in either town. Embry and Quil had gone after running into the two cousins and being "personally invited" as Embry liked to gloat. Neither would shut up about them since.

If Paul had to hear about blue eyes or freckles or perfect curls or killer bodies one more time, he really might punch either or both of them. He seriously hoped Mike wasn't a member of the fan club as well. Otherwise, the last couple hours of his shift were about to get a lot harder to get through.

"You think that place is really haunted?" Mike asked suddenly. Paul snorted, glancing over at him.

"You actually believe in ghosts?" he replied.

He wasn't halfway surprised if he did. Mike came across as a guy that would believe just about anything. Paul was pretty sure if he told him right now that he turned into a giant wolf, he'd probably take him at his word.

"Right, yea. That shit's not real. Heard they're having another party there this weekend. Thinking about going," Mike then said with a laugh. Paul stopped his work and looked over at him.

"Aren't those for high schoolers?" he asked.

For a moment, Mike squirmed, something that entertained Paul to no end. He couldn't help the smirk that came over his face as Mike's face turned slightly red.

"Heard that it was pretty big and it wasn't _just_ high school students. Some people from out of town came over too," Mike said, trying to play it off. Paul just raised his eyebrows at him. "I just want to check it out, you know? Make sure no one's getting in trouble or… anything."

Paul just snorted and turned back to finish his work, then started back to the storeroom to grab a box of backpacks that needed to be put. The last thing he wanted to listen to was Mike Newton continue talking about the party. Or rather talk at all. And Paul didn't for a second buy his argument that it was to make sure no one was getting into trouble.

Knowing him, he'd probably be in the middle of it, getting just as drunk as everyone else.

As he walked into the back and reached down for the box, Paul heard the front door chime.

"Welcome to Newtons' Olympic Outfitters," Mike said loudly in a way that Paul knew meant an attractive woman had walked in. He rolled his eyes. This was great. Now he was going to be subjected to listening to Marshmallow make an idiot out of himself. Again. "I'm Mike Newton. How can I help you?"

Well, at least he didn't introduce himself as the owner this time.

"Well, hello, Mike," said a voice that immediately set him on edge in a bad way, followed by a giggle. It was too whiny and reminded him far too much of those girls who thought all guys should fall at their feet and worship them. Paul shook his head and lifted the box up in his arms. Mike could have that one all to himself.

It was about then that he felt it.

It wasn't strong or overwhelming, but more a slight tingle. Soft enough that at first Paul didn't really notice it as he walked out of the storeroom and over to the back wall where they displayed the backpacks. But then he paused a moment and looked towards the front of the store. He then shrugged it off and went back to work.

"What can I help you with, ladies?" Mike asked.

"Oh, well, we're new in town and just thought we'd check out all the stores," the woman said, though she sounded less interested. Paul nearly snorted to himself, picturing the owner of the voice's face as she realized this wasn't the kind of store she probably usually liked.

"Actually, I was wondering if you could recommend a good pair of hiking boots," another voice said.

This one had Paul freezing as the niggle of a feeling went through him again, but stronger, and he felt all the hair on his body stand on end. He looked towards the front of the store again, but couldn't see anything from where he was.

"Well, it really depends on what sort of hiking you're looking into," Mike said nonchalantly, which was his way of stalling until he could make up something. Paul could imagine him leaning in over the two women, a stupid grin on his face.

The guy didn't know the first thing about hiking boots. Or most hiking gear, now that he thought about it.

"Oh, well… I guess I'm just looking to check out the forest a bit," the second woman said, hesitation in her voice.

Without thinking, Paul found himself inching down the aisle towards them, wanting to see who owned the voice. He couldn't picture her in his mind, finding instead that he was thinking about basking in the warm sun.

He swore the temperature picked up, though that could just be him. He did run hotter than your average person. And he told himself that he wasn't making his way towards them because of the feeling - whoever she was, he didn't want her walking out the store with the wrong shoes.

"We can come back later," the first woman said, her impatience clear. "But if you aren't doing anything this weekend, we're having a big party on Saturday. You should come."

"Me?" Mike asked. "Okay. Where?"

"The McLaren house," she replied, giggling.

"Sure. I'll be there," Mike replied, sounding almost as though he was in some sort of daze.

Paul picked up his pace, hearing their feet moving across the floor and knowing they were about to walk out of the door.

"See you then, Mike!" the first woman said cheerfully, which was then followed by the chime of the front door.

Just as Paul stepped out of the aisle to the front, the door had shut and the two women were gone. He frowned and then shook his head. What was that? Even though they weren't there anymore, he could still feel a lingering warmth.

"You seriously just missed the two hottest girls I think I've ever seen," Mike gushed. Paul frowned, looking over at him as his anger spiked. He wasn't sure just why he was feeling protective right now. Maybe it was just because Mike was a douche. "I am really looking forward to that party."

"Whatever," Paul said, turning and walking back to the box that he had abandoned. Shaking his head yet again, he returned his focus to his job, though he couldn't help but wonder about the second woman.

Maybe he should think about going to this party himself.

****

Later that night, Paul settled at the table in Emily and Sam's kitchen, filling up his plate as excited chatter buzzed around him. For the rest of his shift he had been distracted by thoughts of the girl who had come into the store. The one who sent shivers through him with just the sound of her voice.

At some point, he started wondering if the weird feeling he had was because he had finally found his imprint. Paul wasn't as vocal about it as the others, not wanting anyone to think it bothered him that he was one of the only older pack members who hadn't imprinted yet. But it did a bit. Back when everyone else was going through it, he had started looking for her in every new face he came across. But then eventually he stopped looking, knowing whoever she was, she wasn't in La Push or Forks.

But maybe the search was finally over.

"Seriously, what's up with you?" Jared whispered, giving him a worried look.

"Later," Paul said, glancing around the table. There was no way he was having this conversation in front of both packs. And he wasn't set to go on patrol for a few more days, so his secret would be safe a bit longer. Jared just nodded.

"So, you going to the party this weekend?" Seth asked, looking at Embry and Quil, his reverence for the older wolves clear.

"Hell yea," Embry said, grinning. "I mean, I didn't imprint, but God… Ro is gorgeous… And just… amazing..."

Paul rolled his eyes, glancing over at Jared, who was chuckling at Embry. Here they went again. Paul brushed it off and focused on his food.

"You know, I'm starting to doubt you," Jared joked. Embry frowned at him as Quil laughed.

"Dude, it's true. Both of them are hot," he said, defending Embry. "Though… Mae's definitely wild."

"Ro is perfect," Embry said, a starry-eyed look coming over his face.

While normally he would tune out, Paul suddenly remembered the two girls that came into the shop today inviting Mike to the party at the McLaren house, everything falling in place. They must have been the infamous "Mae" and "Ro" that Embry and Quil were always on about, though he wondered why he hadn't put it together at the time. He then wondered which was which, feeling the same comforting warmth he had felt earlier when the voice washed over him.

"Can I come?" Seth asked.

"No," Embry, Quil and Jacob all said at the same time, though Paul was pretty sure only Jacob didn't want him there for responsible reasons.

"But half the school is going," Seth whined. "And I'm almost 16."

"I had a hard enough time keeping these two out of trouble," Jacob said, glowering at his so-called best friends before looking back at Seth. "I'm not baby-sitting you, too."

"You're not baby-sitting anyone. We don't want you to come if you're going to stand in the corner and glare the whole time again," Quil protested. "Almost brought the whole party down…"

"I did not and I'm going," Jacob said, glancing over at Sam. "Someone's got to keep an eye out."

Paul looked over at his alpha, finding him barely concealing an annoyed look. Apparently, Jacob had been talking to him about these parties. And Jacob was likely making mountains out of molehills.

Christ, they were just high school parties. Nothing outside of the norm. Just what had his panties in a twist?

"I swear to god, Jake. Mae did not trip you," Quil said, starting to chuckle. Jacob's glare deepened and Paul snorted. Ah, so that was it. He had been embarrassed.

"That's not what… you guys have to admit that something weird is going on at the McLaren house," Jacob pushed.

"Nothing weird is going on except that you can't lighten up," Embry said. Jacob didn't say anything but shot a frown towards Embry.

"But the McLaren house? Why would they want to live there? That place was a dump and it's secluded," Jacob continued. "And I've heard that strange things are going on at Forks High School. I really think we should look into it."

He was now looking at Sam, his expression clear. The older alpha frowned at him.

"Nothing is going on," Embry said, now sounding irritated. "God, it's just two teen girls living in a giant house with their uncle. You saw it yourself, they fixed up the place super nice. Couldn't even tell that it's been empty for so long… And if you're going to be ass, you can just stay home."

He then stood from the table and started to the front door, Quil following him. That was interesting, Paul found. It wasn't often the three disagreed on anything. Just what was it about these girls at the McLaren house?

The two shouted their gratitude to Emily for the food as they left. Jacob sat for a half a second before getting up and following them out the door, shouting for Embry and Quil to wait up.

"You really think something is going on?" Jared asked, looking over at Sam, though his voice held an incredulous note.

"No. Nothing outside your usual idiot teenagers getting drunk," Sam said with a sigh. "Though… maybe you should go keep an eye on them."

"Last I checked they aren't even in our pack anymore and Jake's got that covered," Jared said, scowling at him. Sam sighed and shook his head.

"I hear that any of you pups went, it's extra patrol as punishment - regardless of whose pack you're in," Sam said, settling his eyes on the younger member of the packs.

There was a chorus of "yes, sir" and "got it" with more than one disappointed face. Paul chuckled as he and Jared stood, thanked Emily, and headed out. He wouldn't put it past Seth, Brady and Collin to try and sneak out to the party. Though, at the same time, Seth usually knew when to back off when it came to Jacob. For their sakes, he hoped they stayed home.

"So… what's on your mind that you didn't want to share in front of the others?" Jared asked once they were far enough away that no one in the house could hear them. Paul glanced at him.

"Those girls that Embry's going on about all the time? They came into the store today. At least I think it was them," he said with a sigh.

"They as hot as he makes them out to be?" Jared asked, laughing. Paul shrugged.

"I was stuck in the back, so didn't get a look at them before they left, but… it was kind of weird," Paul said. "When one of them spoke, I felt… drawn to her. It was like I had goosebumps. And I kept thinking about summer…"

He looked over, finding Jared studying him thoughtfully before he grinned.

"You know what this means? We gotta go to that party this weekend," he replied. "Oh, I can't wait to see the look on Embry's face when you imprint on her."

"You think that could be what's going on, do you?" Paul said, his heart starting to pound.

It felt strange saying it out loud. Could this mystery girl be his imprint? She obviously wasn't Embry's. He looked over at Jared, eagerly waiting for his answer. He had apparently imprinted on Kim his first day back at school after he phased and told Paul all about it once he phased the first time. But he couldn't remember if something like this had happened with them.

"Could be," Jared said. "It wasn't exactly like that for me, but it's a little different for everyone, I think." The two walked on a bit more before he spoke more. "Though, kind of wish Embry said more about her than 'she's hot.'"

Paul snorted and shook his head.

"Me too. Though… she asked about hiking boots… think she likes hiking or the outdoors," he said, considering the information. If she did, it was something they would already have in common.

Part of him felt a bit silly, obsessing over a girl he hadn't even seen yet on the off chance she might be some mystical, cosmic connection for him. But the other part of him couldn't stop.

She had had a gentle voice. Kind. Warm like a summer breeze. Even though Mike had been making an idiot out of himself, she hadn't done anything to make fun of him. The other one had an underlining harsh edge to her voice that gave it a hint of cruelty. But that had been missing from the second woman's voice.

He tried, yet again, to conjure a picture of what she might look like in his mind, remembering everything Embry and Quil had said. He knew this Ro was a redhead while Mae had blonde curls. Both blue eyes. But once again, he couldn't quite get an image. All he felt was comforting warmth.

"So, are you in?" Jared asked, pulling Paul from his thoughts.

"Yea, guess I should go check it out," he replied, trying to hide the sudden spike of excitement that ran through him. "See if that's what's going on."

He couldn't help but feel lighter. Maybe this was his imprint - his other half. Paul couldn't lie to himself - it would be a relief to finally find her just so that he could stop looking and wondering. And so that Embry and Quil would stop giving him shit about it, even though Embry still hadn't imprinted either. At least this way, Paul wouldn't be the last one.

"You think Jacob is being paranoid?" Jared then asked. Paul chuckled.

"Since he imprinted on Nessie, he thinks everything is a threat," he replied.

"But you work in Forks. Have you heard anything?" Jared asked. Paul shrugged.

"Not like I've made tons of friends there. If there's something going on, no one around me is talking about it. Though I tend to think no. Marshmallow's the town gossip and I'm sure he'd mention it," Paul said.

He frowned slightly as he thought over the last few weeks. There was always a chance Mike had said something and he brushed it off, not really caring to listen to him at all. Had he mentioned something? Maybe he should pay more attention at work tomorrow. Paul then chuckled and shook his head.

Jacob's paranoia was rubbing off on him.

They had finally reached Paul's house and he turned waving good-bye as Jared continued on to Kim's house, where he went just about every night after hanging out with Paul or doing whatever he had to do for the pack.

"How was the meeting?" his dad asked, looking over at him from where he was sitting in his recliner watching the news as Paul walked in.

"Same old," Paul said with a sigh as he walked over and sat on the couch, turning his attention to the TV. They were going on about the weather, saying something about how they were looking to experience the warmest fall on record. Paul hadn't noticed. Hot or cold weather, he always felt the same.

"Good to hear," his dad said with a sigh. "At least I don't have to worry at work."

Paul chuckled as he looked over at his dad. He had been working with the parks service since before he was born, enjoying being out in nature. He had even suggested that Paul start working there as well, though he had turned it down. Much like Sam offering him a job, Paul wanted to get work on his own.

"Doubt there's much of anything that could take you down," he replied. Which was mostly true. While Paul had his current physique in large part to his wolf side, he had always been tall and muscular much like his dad, who was imposing without the wolf gene helping.

"At least I don't have to worry about vampires," the older man said. Paul shot him a look. "Ones that would rather eat me than elk, that is."

Paul just chuckled as he pushed off the couch and headed towards the kitchen to get more food. He was pretty sure his dad would never run into the Cullens while he was out in Olympic National Park.

Once he had put together a large sandwich, he walked back into the living room, placing his plate on the coffee table before handing his dad a can of beer he had brought with him. He then settled down and started eating.

"Heard anything new from them?" his dad then asked. Paul glanced at him and continued chewing.

"Still the same. Can't move until Nessie is older," he said after swallowing. His dad nodded slowly, taking a drink of his beer. "So, another 5 or 6 years."

He focused on his sandwich, hoping his dad wasn't about to launch into another one of his talks about the future. This open relationship they had was still pretty new to Paul. Before he phased, they had barely talked and when they did, it was usually his dad yelling at him for getting into trouble. Even then, Paul knew his dad cared about him. Did whatever he could to try and get his wayward son back on the straight and narrow. Ben Lahote had seen Paul's phasing as a gift and second chance to have the sort of relationship with his son that had been lost when he entered his pre-teen years.

A bit of guilt found its way into Paul's stomach. He hadn't made things easy for his dad and they were already hard enough. Things had been really good until his mother died from cancer when he was 12. And then the anger had taken over, which somehow turned into resentment, even though it wasn't Ben's fault and he was trying as hard as he could to be both mom and dad to his volatile son. Even in the worst of it, Ben had never given up on his son though most everyone else had already written him off.

"I think I'm going to tuck in. Got work tomorrow," Paul said after quickly finishing his sandwich. He wasn't tired, but he wasn't sure he wanted to have a deep talk with his dad right now.

"Alright. See you at dinner tomorrow," Ben said with a sigh.

Paul just nodded as he stood and walked his dishes to the kitchen, putting them in the sink before he headed to his room.

There were a lot of things going through his mind as he got out of his clothes and pulled on a pair of sleep pants. Sighing, he laid back on his bed and stared at the ceiling as one thought began to overtake all the rest.

As he drifted off, a smile came over Paul's face as his mind filled with thoughts of summer, though he wasn't sure why.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still working on this one! I've been focused on trying to get more chapters written on my other story "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" and that's had me distracted but planning to get more written tomorrow. And we're inching closer to the first meeting… I love the first meeting…
> 
> Thanks for reading and following!


	5. Summer Nights

Roisin sighed as she listened to Mae chatter about the latest gossip while they set up for the party. Half the names she mentioned, Roisin didn't even recognize, though she probably should have, considering the school itself wasn't that big and they had been attending for a month. And it wasn't that she didn't care, she was just feeling slightly on edge for reasons she couldn't quite explain.

She hadn't even wanted to do another party so soon, but as usual, Mae and the others in their mixed friend group had talked her into it. Or, rather it was Mae and her friends that talked to her into it. Tara, Megan and Trey seemed to not care one way or another, which was the very reason Roisin was starting to spend more of her free time with them rather than Mae, Carly, Josh and Carly's second-in-command Rosemary.

Mae was over the moon with their new status at Forks High School courtesy of the first party, wanting nothing more than to solidify it with another and walking around like she owned the place, quickly taking over Carly's status of Queen Bee. Either the other girl didn't care or she was really good at hiding it, though Roisin wasn't exactly sure which. Roisin only really tolerated her presence at lunch since Mae insisted they eat together every day. And well, Mae had way too much fun creating drama between the two vastly different groups of teens.

"So, you think that yummy guy from the store will be here?" Mae asked, suddenly appearing next to Roisin after quickly running the last bit of furniture to an upstairs storage room.

She had complained almost non-stop when Roisin said they would have to do all the set-up for any parties themselves rather than hiring someone like they did in LA. But the closer they got to the party's start, the happier she got and seemed to finally have laid off on the complaints.

"Maybe," Roisin said from where she was fluttering in the air setting up lights with Sean. "I don't really care."

"Really hope Embry and Quil come again. I think Embry's sweet on you," Mae continued. Roisin shot Sean a look, who only returned it with a smirk. "You should date him."

"Don't really care to date anyone, Mae," Roisin said as she lowered herself to the ground, tucking her wings behind her, and surveyed her work.

"Please, you know it's good for you. This party is too. You _need_ it," Mae pushed. Roisin raised her eyebrows and looked over at her best friend.

Mae did have a bit of a point. Being in the mortal world came with its own toll and partaking in frivolities did help. It wasn't so much that being here weakened her by any means. It was more so about keeping balance. Royal fae rarely ever left the fae world and without some sort of connection to it, they could get a bit unstable. And well, no one wanted an unstable fae as strong as Roisin running around in the mortal world. It had caused problems before.

While lately Roisin kept it in check - again, the parties and occasionally being around groups of fae helped - something had her feeling off kilter since the day she and Mae wandered into the outdoors store by accident. Thankfully it hadn't caused any major disruptions, but she had accidentally caused a glass to explode in Physics just yesterday.

"You know I'm right," Mae said, her voice taking on a sickly sweet yet haughty tone as she tossed her blonde curls over her shoulder. "Which is why I've done something to help out my dearest, bestest friend."

Roisin turned towards her fully, now feeling a bit suspicious. Mae's "help" often got them into trouble.

"What did you do?" Roisin asked. Mae giggled as the doorbell rang and she began skipping towards the front door, her wings fluttering happily behind her. "I'm serious. What did you do?"

"You'll be thanking me later," Mae sang, winking over her shoulder at Roisin.

Roisin looked over at Sean, who was watching the whole ordeal with a mildly amused, yet cautious expression.

"Do you know anything about this?" she asked.

"I may pretend to be your guardian for the mortals, but you know I don't _actually_ watch everything you two get up to," he replied. "You're both 150 now. Definitely don't need me minding your every step."

Roisin turned back to the door as she heard excited squeals and then rolled her eyes as a group walked in. Of all the stupid things to do, Mae had gone and invited a bunch of fae.

She knew they were solitary - a vast majority in the mortal world were, deciding to leave the politics of the fae courts behind for a more independent life. And even though she felt a bit more at ease with more of her kind around, she knew that this was playing with fire. Inviting too many fae into one place would not go unnoticed - by the Fae world or the mortals around them.

"Mae," Roisin said, an edge to her voice that Mae completely ignored.

"Come on, we need to liven things up a bit!" Mae shouted. "And we both know that it'll help you settle down." Roisin scowled at her and then looked at the various fae, who were taking in the large house.

"Fine, but they follow my rules," Roisin stated.

"This one seems territorial," one of them retorted jovially - a fae with impossibly beautiful features and skin as dark as night - as it studied her closely. Roisin took a deep breath, managing to keep her truest self hidden even from their eyes.

While the solitary fae mostly stayed away from the few court fae that ventured into the mortal world and never went back to the Fae world as they were either in self-exile or forced there, she had to be cautious. They were technically supposed to be in hiding.

"I do want to stay here long-term and the last thing we need is for anyone noticing too much," Roisin said. "Be careful with the mortals. I don't want anyone hurt. Glamours on at all times. And for the goddesses' sakes, no fae wine."

"We don't even have any," Mae said, rolling her eyes and then grumbling under her breath about how Roisin could use some about now. Roisin leveled a glare at her.

"Relax. We know the drill," another fae said, looking around the room with a contemplative look. "We've been living over here a long time." She then looked at Roisin as a smirk appeared and her iridescent wings fluttered behind her. "We'll be careful around the mortals. But it looks like you could use some help with getting this place ready."

Roisin looked over to Sean for support. He just smiled and shrugged.

"More hands wouldn't hurt," he replied.

Sighing in defeat, Roisin turned and took in the group of about 10 fae. More hands would make things go by faster; even with their speed and strength, parties took awhile to put together. And they were right - they had been in the mortal world a lot longer than she and Mae. They knew how to stay hidden.

Maybe this wouldn't be a disaster.

"Okay, fine. Come with me," she said, walking to the kitchen. "I hope some of you know how to cook."

"Oh, this is going to be so much fun!" Mae squealed.

"I certainly hope so," Roisin muttered to herself.

****

Roisin had to admit that they had outdone themselves. This party was turning out even bigger than the other one, which was both exciting and terrifying at the same time. Pretty much all of Forks High was here, along with a good portion of students from the high school on the nearby reservation, La Push. There were also a lot of faces that she didn't recognize, meaning people from other towns had somehow heard about it and showed up. While she was mostly enjoying herself, she couldn't help but remain extra cautious. This was the first time they had allowed other fae to attend a party in Forks, and that alone had her on edge.

Or well, if she was being truly honest with herself, she was on edge even without that. She just couldn't banish the feeling that something big was about to happen, though she wasn't sure what.

"You seem tense," Sean said, walking up to her side and looking out over the party. She glanced at him out of the corner of his eye, surprised but not completely, that he was being more present for this one.

At the previous party, he had spent most of the night in his room, opting out on taking part since he was supposed to be their uncle and no one liked a party with a guardian hanging around. She supposed he was only present this time with the inclusion of the other fae, though she noticed he had spent most of his time talking to another solitary named Cara - the two of them mostly watching while unseen by mortals. Cara always seemed to pop up wherever they went and Roisin most definitely thought something was going on there, though Sean always evaded answering her whenever she asked about it. The only thing she knew was that they had met when they were both still part of the Shadow Court, though Roisin was under the impression that Cara had followed him when he left.

"Just… nervous, is all," Roisin replied, scanning the mass of people now filling the great room, with some spilling out onto the back verandah.

Even though the weather should have been getting chilly - especially at night - it was still rather warm. At the back of her mind, Roisin knew her presence here was likely behind it, but she didn't like to think about that too much. Perhaps it was just a coincidence?

"As much as I hate to admit it, Mae is right. You should relax and have fun. Nothing is going to get out of hand unless _you_ allow yourself to get too unhinged," Sean said. "Cara and I are watching things and the solitary fae are behaving."

"I know, just… I get this feeling," Roisin said, her brow furrowed. "I don't want anything to happen here. I know we haven't been here all that long, but… I feel a connection with this place. And I want to stay for as long as I can. I'm starting to get tired of moving around every few months or so. It would be nice to stay somewhere longer than a year, you know?"

"I get it," Sean said, causing Roisin to look over at him, her eyes slightly wide. "I walked away from the courts. All of us did, but I think we're all looking for somewhere in this world to belong. Maybe you've finally found that."

Roisin chuckled and looked back out at the party.

"Wish I could understand why," she replied.

"I'm sure you will soon enough," Sean said lightly. "But for the time being, maybe just enjoy the ride." He glanced over at someone behind Roisin. "And it looks like your admirer has arrived."

Roisin turned, seeing the three boys from La Push as they walked in, finally joining the rest of their classmates that were already there. Embry and Quil were excitedly scanning the crowd while Jacob scowled. She wasn't sure why he had come back - he hadn't seemed to enjoy himself all that much before. And there was something about the three that seemed different from other mortals, though Roisin couldn't quite put her finger on it. At the moment, it was just a funny feeling she got and the fact she felt inexplicably drawn to them.

She smiled and started through the crowd. She had genuinely enjoyed Embry's company at the last party - and the boy could kiss - but she wasn't really interested in anything more than that. The whole thing about him being mortal and eventually growing old and dying. As a royal fae, Roisin would never look all that older than she did at the moment and would live pretty much forever. There wasn't a whole that could kill or hurt the fae, especially not those with royal blood, and definitely not age or illness. Because of that she was careful not to form too strong attachments to any one mortal. It was one of the first things Sean had taught them, after all.

"You made it," she said happily, finally feeling some of the anxiety from earlier leave her. Embry turned to look at her and beamed.

"Looks like there's even more people here than last time," he said, glancing around.

"Yea, you know Mae. Always making friends," she said lightly as she looked over, seeing the fae in question now dancing with one of the solitaries.

Even though to mortal eyes they looked just as human as anyone else, Roisin could see Mae's wings fluttering happily behind her, though a nearby student from Forks felt a bit of a breeze and turned to look around, wondering what it was.

Oh dear. Well, at least it wasn't a more overt sign of what they were.

"If you'll excuse me," Quil said with a grin as he started towards Mae.

"Good to see you again, Jacob," Roisin said, smiling warmly at him. For a moment as he looked at her, the scowl eased. But just as suddenly, it reappeared as he nodded and then stalked off. "I get the feeling he doesn't like me for some reason."

"Nah, that's just Jake. He used to be more fun, but got a hell of a lot more serious over the past year or so. It's his new normal," Embry replied with a chuckle. "You'll get used to it. We all have."

Roisin nodded, feeling a bit better. She was starting to worry that she had done or said something to him that offended him, but couldn't figure out what it was.

"So… drink or dance?" she asked, smiling up at Embry.

"Definitely dance. And then maybe a drink," Embry said, already reaching for her hand. Roisin grinned.

"I like that plan."

****

Roisin laughed as she and Embry walked over to a makeshift bar they had set up outside on the verandah. After dancing for a while, she noticed Embry was feeling a bit warm and suggested they get some air. As he quickly made up some drinks - with water that she and Sean had charmed to taste like alcohol so that no one would get in trouble - she looked around, noticing that everyone seemed to be having a good time and so far there had been no disasters.

"God, I don't think I can ever remember the weather being this nice at this time of year," Embry said as he handed her a cup.

Roisin's eyes widened slightly as she took a drink.

"Oh? It's not usually like this?" she asked, keeping her tone calm.

Granted it's not like he would ever in a million years suspect that it had anything to do with her. As far as Embry was concerned, she was a normal high school senior.

Not a royal Summer Court fae.

And well, in her defense, she hadn't realized that she could affect the weather this much. Everywhere else they had lived always had warmer climes.

"Not really. Though still as rainy and cloudy as usual," he replied.

Roisin nearly breathed a sigh of relief. Okay, so she wasn't fucking with the weather too much. But she was sucking in a breath rather quickly not a moment later as Embry stepped closer to her, smiling down at her as his hand moved to rest on her waist. As she looked up into his eyes, she could see that she was clearly affecting him. In fact, the whole party seemed a bit more energetic now that she really looked at it - the dancing a bit wilder, the laughter a bit louder, people acting a bit more reckless. Of course she knew why. It was only natural with as many fae present as there were. And well, with two of them being Summer fae and few former Shadow Court fae, it was only natural that people were a bit more charged in the lust category.

They were the two courts most associated with intense emotions in that regard.

"How about we go somewhere a bit more private," he suggested, his eyes darkening slightly.

While Roisin felt her heart stutter a bit and a surge of longing spike through her, something stopped her. Normally, she would have gone off with him - maybe made out for a bit or done a bit more - but something inside her warned her to stay in the party. Probably because she still didn't completely trust Mae or the others to behave themselves. So she smiled coyly up at him, placing a hand on his chest to stop him from moving closer.

"Actually, I want to dance more," she said, fluttering her eyelashes slightly in a way that she knew he wouldn't be able to resist. Embry chuckled and stepped back, taking another large drink from his cup.

"Fair enough," he said before finishing the drink and putting the cup down. Roisin did the same and then took his hand, leading back inside and to the middle of the dance floor.

In no time, he had his arms around her as they moved in time with the music, his hands gliding up and down her exposed back and causing shivers to run through her. For a moment, she wished she hadn't let Mae talk her into wearing a halter top with a nearly completely open back. But then she tossed her head back, closing her eyes slightly as she allowed the music to take over, her heart matching the beat.

She was supposed to be relaxing and having fun. So, by the goddesses, she would do that.

****

Roisin managed to pull herself away from Embry a bit later, needing to put some space between them. Not only did she need a break, she worried if she spent too much time with him, especially with her nerves all over the place, she couldn't stop things from progressing down the direction she could clearly see he wanted to go.

And again, somehow she felt like she shouldn't do that.

"You look like you could use a real drink."

Roisin nearly jumped, seeing Cara was next to her, holding out a cup, her violet eyes swirling in mirth. Roisin didn't ask questions, just took the cup and downed a good portion of it, sputtering slightly.

"Please do not tell me this out there somewhere," she said, looking up at the fae as she handed the cup back, the alcohol strong in the drink even though it didn't affect them as much as mortals. Cara tossed her head back and laughed, her dark purple hair falling back from her shoulders. Though it was bright, there was a dark undertone to it.

"Don't worry, Ro. Sean and I are watching things. That's from my personal stash which is safely tucked away in Sean's room," she said, grinning.

Even though she wasn't in the Shadow Court anymore and even then wasn't strong enough to do any serious harm, Roisin couldn't help a shiver of fear that spiked in her at Cara's devious grin. Thank the goddesses none of the mortals could see it, otherwise they'd probably turn and run.

Roisin glanced around the room from the corner she was hiding in, seeing that things were still relatively normal. At least nothing that the mortals would notice was happening. Though from the looks of it, she was going to have an even harder time talking Mae and the others out of another party.

"I know you aren't as familiar with the others, but you can trust them. They know not to step over the line," Cara said, correctly guessing what Roisin was thinking about. "I may not be Shadow Court anymore, but I can still strike the fear of the goddesses in them when necessary."

Roisin looked over at her, studying the older fae for a moment. She supposed other courts would likely judge her as soon as looking at her with her many tattoos, penchant for leather and bustiers, and the harsh edge to her features and voice. The Summer Court definitely would. But the more Roisin got to know Cara, the more she saw beyond that. She was wicked funny and had a love for corny 80s movies. Seemed to genuinely care for others, though she didn't let that side show too much.

And Sean had vouched for her. If he thought she was good folk, then she must be.

"I appreciate your help tonight and… well always," Roisin found herself saying, realizing she had never actually thanked Cara for the few scraps she and Sean had helped her and Mae get out of.

Cara raised her eyebrows, looking over at her. For a moment, her face softened.

"Well, Sean told me about why you wanted to leave and… I get it," she replied. "Guess it goes to show that not all royals are the same. Some of you aren't assholes."

Roisin chuckled and shrugged as she looked around the room again.

"I honestly don't get it," she said, pausing to take a breath. But before she could continue, Roisin found her mind going completely blank as a sudden rush of butterflies hit her.

It was similar to the feeling she had gotten in the store, but much, much stronger.

Immediately, Roisin looked around the room, trying to find the source. It was then that her eyes fell on two new additions. Two tall, buff guys with deeply tan skin stood apart from the others, partially because of their sheer size. While they were both beautiful in her eyes, she found she couldn't look away from the taller, broader of the two.

There was something about the way he smiled as he took in the party. The confidence in his posture, as though he knew he could easily take on anyone in the room. The pure power that poured out from his dark eyes. Eyes that were currently searching the room for something.

Roisin could vaguely hear Cara saying something to her, but didn't pay attention as she started walking in his direction, almost as though there was some string pulling her to him. He started turning his head towards her and any second now, their eyes would meet. The anticipation was climbing inside her at a startling rate.

But then suddenly, her way was blocked and Roisin felt slightly disoriented as the connection was broken and she looked up into the grinning face of Embry.

"There you are," he said, his hands grabbing her waist to help steady her. Roisin could only blink in response, before smiling. What the hell was wrong with her? "You owe me another dance."

"Sure," she said breezily as he pulled her back into the middle of the crowd. Roisin looked over her shoulder, trying to find the guy from before, but he had disappeared.

Even though she wasn't sure what was going on, she felt like she had to find him. That _something_ depended on her finding him. She just wasn't sure what.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have to admit, I have been having a lot of fun coming up with the fae background stuff in this story. There are so many influences out there! And the sky is pretty much the limit with what you want to do with them. Of course, my fae have a mischievous streak, though the severity of it depends on the fae and sometimes the court. And well, for some reason I wanted Roisin to be a bit more responsible – or at least trying to. But yea, some things are common throughout all fae, while some things are attributed to the court they were born into, while some things are specific to the fae. As Roisin is a royal Summer fae, she's obviously more powerful and her power is very much tied into her emotions, which we'll see her struggle to control throughout the story.
> 
> For reference, there are five courts, though we only really get into the details of three of them in this story. But they are Summer, Winter, Spring, Autumn and Shadow, with the three we get really into being Summer, Winter and Shadow. Which will be coming in future chapters.
> 
> Thanks for reading and following!


	6. We Touched the Sun

"Holy shit, this is the place?" Paul said as Jared pulled up the drive to the large house nestled among the trees. Already, tons of cars lined the drive and Paul was beginning to wonder just where Jared intended to park.

That and he had seen the McLaren house before when it was an abandoned dump and he almost couldn't believe this was the same place. How the hell had they been able to fix it up as quickly as they did? Must be really rich. Like, richer than the Cullens rich.

Thankfully as they pulled up into the driveway in front of the large house, there was enough room, though Paul felt like his eyes would bug out. It was just as big as the Cullens', but seemed grander in a way, appearing more English manor than a house.

"I know, right? Who thought you could fix up the McLaren place?" Jared said with a chuckle as he parked and the two got out.

To the left was a large detached garage that connected to the main house by an awning with more cars parked back behind it. Paul could feel the thump of bass and while the front of the house was lit up, it seemed like there were strobe lights or something going on inside.

"Right, well… let's see what Embry and Quil are getting on about," Jared said with a grin as he pushed the door open. "And maybe find your imprint…"

When they walked in and stopped at the edge of the room for a moment, Paul thought he was in a club. Just in front of them was a large, open space that seemed to have been cleared of the furniture just for the party. There were flashing lights, pumping music, and far more people there than he thought even lived in the area.

Apparently these parties _were_ popular.

For a moment, Paul felt the same tingling he got at the shop come over him. His eyes roved through the crowd of dancers, searching for the source. But before he could spend too much time looking, Jared had thumped him on the chest and motioned for him to follow.

They made their way along the edge of the crowd, Jared finding a bar off to the side in front of a large fireplace.

"Shit, how much alcohol do you think is here?" he asked, looking back at Paul.

Paul took in the numerous bottles of everything from tequila to rum and vodka, and then looked around the room, seeing nearly everyone with a cup in hand. There were obviously others around elsewhere.

"Rich people," he said dryly as Jared turned back to the bar and quickly poured Coke for himself and made up another drink for Paul, holding it out to him once he was finished.

They then turned back to watch the party, Paul sipping at his drink. He didn't recognize a lot of people and assumed most were from Forks, though he saw plenty of others from La Push. Though, where were Embry and Quil?

"When did you guys get here?!"

Paul looked over, seeing Jacob walk up, looking as though he'd rather be anywhere else. Great. Of all the people to run into here. Already he felt the mood sink as he took in Jacob's scowl and the suspicion in his eyes.

"Where's Embry and Quil?" Jared shouted over the music. Jacob rolled his eyes, looked over and pointed towards the crowded dance floor.

Paul looked over, finally finding Embry through a break in the crowd, his hands roaming up the mostly bare back of some girl with red (at least he thought it was red - the lights, man), wavy hair tucked over her shoulder and a large tattoo of fairy wings on her back.

While he normally would snort at that, he found it hard to look away from her, the tingling getting stronger.

He then took a drink, and forced himself to look away, but found his eyes being drawn back to Embry and the girl. There was something about the way she moved with the music that was entrancing. He noticed there were other guys watching her as well, a few moving closer, as though they were waiting for the second that Embry let her go. A spike of possessiveness hit Paul, which he didn't understand. He didn't know her - hadn't even seen her face - so why was he suddenly feeling so protective?

Unless Jared was right. And Embry currently had his paws all over his imprint. The desire to walk over to them and push the younger wolf away from her was almost too strong to ignore.

She currently had her arms wrapped around Embry's neck and went up on her toes and said something into his ear. He laughed and looked down at her as though she walked on water. He then looked over and saw them. Looking back down at her, he said something and then they were walking over.

Paul looked over at Jared, finding he was still watching Embry with an amused look.

"I mean, I know he didn't imprint on her, but it's hard to tell with that goofy look on his face," he replied, looking over at Paul. He snorted in response.

"He's probably drunk," Paul replied, looking back at them, finding the girl was hidden behind Embry as he walked up, which wasn't all that hard. While she was tall in her own right, Embry was easily 6'4 and towered over even Paul.

"Finally you got your asses here. Now, may I introduce our hostess… Roisin," he said as he stepped aside and pulled the girl up.

As soon as Paul locked eyes with her, he knew it was game over. And that Embry was going to be pissed as hell.

Even though she had an arm wrapped around Embry's waist, he saw the slight widening of her eyes - which were the color of the summer sky. Her mouth dropped open slightly and Paul could almost feel her heartbeat pick up. Or maybe that was his. For a moment all he saw was her. And the future before him. Protecting her. Being with her. Kissing her. Holding her. Comforting her. Whoever this Roisin was.

For a moment, Paul swore the heat in the room picked up. In a manner of seconds, he already felt a bit sweaty and the desire to pull off his shirt was strong for some reason. But that was quickly replaced by the image of her body pressed against his. Kissing her. Ripping off all their clothing.

He yanked his eyes away from her at that point, wondering just what the hell had come over him. Yea, he was no saint and all, but this was next level. And he was pretty sure when the others imprinted, it hadn't been like this - the sudden and intense rush of desire for his imprint. Even if he had somehow managed to hide it while they were phased, Jared definitely would have mentioned something. The man overshared on a regular basis.

Or maybe this was just how it was for him. Paul had always been a ladies' man and gotten around before all the leech shit put a stop to it by forcing him to focus on that. And he was more hot-blooded, impulsive and quick-tempered than the others. In that regard, he supposed it made sense that he would have this immediate reaction to seeing his imprint for the first time. Didn't help that she truly was gorgeous with legs that went on for days, a slender, yet curvy build and lips that were begging to be kissed. God, he really wanted to touch her right now.

"That's Paul and Jared," he heard Embry say.

"Nice to meet you," he heard a breathless voice as sweet as honey reply.

Oh shit. He was really a goner. He needed to get out of here. Preferably with her, but even though he couldn't care two wits about Embry's love life and they were in different packs, he knew it would only make things worse if he grabbed her and ran off, then fucked her brains out while Embry was in the other room.

Paul took a deep breath, somehow calming his raging hormones, and managed to look back over, finding she was still watching him, a curious look on her face. He took another deep breath and was overwhelmed by the smell of honeysuckle as his mind filled with images of the summer sun going down over the ocean. Fireworks. He could almost feel the summer heat on his skin.

He was vaguely aware that the others were talking, but all he could do was stare into her eyes.

Suddenly, she let go of Embry and stepped towards him. Before he could register what was happening, she grabbed his arm - shit, she was strong - and pulled him towards her, leading him back out onto the dance floor.

Paul couldn't help but feel overwhelmed. He wished he could blame it on the alcohol, but he had only had a couple sips and could tell that Jared had made a weak drink. The next thing he knew, she had wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer and urging him to start moving with her to the beat of the song.

"So… why didn't you come to the last party with Embry?" she asked. Paul blinked a few times, trying to remember how to speak.

"Didn't know about it," he finally said.

She smiled up at him - a beautiful smile that made him think of a summer sunset. He found he couldn't look away as his cup dropped to the ground and he placed his hands on her waist, finally giving into the desire to touch her.

She seemed to like that as her smile brightened.

"Roisin… right?" he said, enjoying the feeling of her name on his tongue. It was strange, like nothing he had ever heard before. She nodded.

"And… Paul?"

He could only nod, finding all of his senses completely flooded with her. He pulled her closer a bit rougher than he intended to, though she only chuckled in response. As they continued to dance, he completely forgot anyone else was around them as he buried his nose in her neck, inhaling deeply. Fuck, he couldn't get enough of her smell.

He was suddenly incredibly glad he came to this damn party tonight.

****

"Fuck! Are you kidding me?!" Embry shouted as he watched Paul and Roisin walk off. "This is the second time. I swear to god, there is something wrong with me…"

"How were you supposed to know that Paul would imprint?" Jared asked, laughing. "Though, I mean… you obviously hadn't, meaning she's fair game…"

"But, we had a thing," Embry said, on the verge of whining which was hilarious considering his size.

"By _thing_ , if you mean occasionally making out with her, I think that's over. No way Paul's letting you anywhere near her now," Jared said, still thoroughly amused by the situation, though part of him did feel bad for the guy.

Embry had been dating Kim for a few months before they all started shifting and Jared imprinted on her. At least this time it hadn't been that serious.

Embry continued grumbling to himself as he stepped over to the bar and started making up a new drink. Jared looked over at Jacob, finding him watching the two on the dance floor, a stern look on his face.

"Dude. Lighten up. You're far too serious for a senior," Jared said. "And we should be happy for him. Maybe this will finally get him to calm down. Don't know about you, but I could use a break from the constant, random fights."

Jacob glanced at him and looked back at the two, who had started making out. He sniffed in disapproval.

"I don't know," he replied. "Didn't you feel a bit… off… when you got here? Even more so whenever she came over?"

"I mean, I thought she was really hot, but that's about it," Jared replied casually.

"Hot? She's gorgeous. The most beautiful girl I've ever seen. And her eyes… and…" Embry trailed off, getting a bit starry-eyed. It then transformed into a glare as he looked back at Paul and Roisin.

"Embry! Where's Ro?" a blonde girl shouted as she bounced up to him. She then stopped, a bit stunned, when she saw his friends. Quickly a sly smile came over her face.

Jacob stiffened as Jared began smiling.

"Hi, Jake. And who are you?" she asked, holding her hand out to Jared.

"Jared," he replied, shaking her hand as a bit of a stunned look came over his face. He then shook his head and took another drink, the moment - whatever it was - passed. An odd look came over her face that Jared missed, but Jacob didn't.

"This is Mae. Roisin's cousin," Embry explained to Jared, who nodded.

"Nice house," Jared said.

"Thanks. Our guardian has a bit of an expensive taste," Mae replied, looking around the dance floor. Her eyes widened slightly as she saw Roisin and Paul before she giggled. Turning back to Embry, she placed a comforting hand on his arm, a look full of sympathy coming over her. "Come on. Dance with me, Em."

All traces of his previous bad mood disappeared as he let the small girl lead him away.

"Seriously, something is off here," Jacob said again. Jared raised his eyebrows as he looked over at him. "I mean, these are parties you only see on TV and in movies. They don't actually happen in real life. Especially not here. And their uncle is just… completely fine with it? I mean… I don't even think most of these people live around here. How did they find out?"

"Where is the uncle?" Jared asked, finally starting to see what Jacob was talking about.

"I don't know. I didn't meet him," Jacob said, his eyes scanning the crowd. "They've only been here a few months. How do you meet this many people in just a few months? Establish _this_ _kind_ of reputation to even get this many people here?"

Jared looked around the room again and sighed.

"Are you serious, Jake? It's called social media. And I thought you were hip with all the kids' stuff," Jared joked. Jacob glared at him.

"It's more than that-"

"Can't you just lighten up a bit? I think being alpha has gone to your head," Jared replied calmly.

"As Sam's beta, shouldn't you be a bit more serious about this?" Jacob countered.

"Hey, I'm DD," Jared said, holding up his cup. "Nothing but soda in here. That's my responsible deed for the night. Besides, I had a feeling that was going to happen." He pointed towards Paul and Roisin.

Jacob looked over at the couple and then back at Jared, a confused look on his face.

"What do you mean?" he asked, stepping closer. Jared just laughed.

"Apparently she and Mae went into the outdoors shop while Paul was working. He didn't see her, otherwise it would have happened then, but he felt it," Jared replied easily. "That was pretty much the only reason I talked him into coming tonight."

Jacob rolled his eyes.

"Fine, I'm going to try and keep an eye on the others," he grumbled before walking off. Jared just shrugged and continued watching the party.

Just because Jacob was in work mode didn't mean he had to be.

****

Roisin tossed her head back, feeling Paul's lips against her skin and the heat radiating off his body as he held her close. She wasn't sure if it was the party or her, but it felt a lot hotter than usual and a slight sheen of sweat was starting to appear on her brow. But she didn't mind. Whatever this was, it felt good. Really good. So much more intense than anything she had ever felt before.

Paul pulled back from her neck, his eyes slightly dark as a sly smile came over his face. She was suddenly incredibly happy that she had discovered Forks.

"Is there somewhere more quiet?" he asked, leaning down to speak into her ear, his breath tickling her neck. He was still shouting a bit to make himself heard over the music. She smiled in return and nodded.

Turning, she led him through the gyrating crowd towards a door to the left of the large fireplace that was almost invisible, blending in with the white wall around it. Glancing back at him, she winked before turning the knob and walking in, leading him with her.

As soon as she shut the door, the sound of the music died down exponentially and she quietly turned the lock, not wanting to have any sort of interruptions. Granted most people probably completely missed the door to the master bedroom.

Paul whistled as he took in the large room and massive windows, now covered in blue curtains, hiding them from view of anyone that might be on the verandah. A lamp on her nightstand cast a warm glow on the room. Roisin leaned against the door, taking a moment to fully appreciate him. She had thought Embry was handsome, but Paul… he was next level. Broader, more muscular, but not too much. Way hotter and alluring than any of the mortal boys at Forks High. Or anyone she had ever met - mortal or fae. He turned towards her, smiling slightly in a way that had heat pooling in her core.

"This is a pretty big house for just you," he said. Roisin shrugged.

"It's just me, Mae and Sean, but he's a sucker for big houses in rural areas," she replied easily.

"And he's okay with these parties?" Paul asked.

Roisin chuckled and ran her fingers through her waves. The last she saw Sean he was on the verandah, trying to stay out of sight and chatting with some of the solitary fae, probably trying to keep them entertained so they didn't get bored and mess with any of the mortal guests.

"Sean… understands," she replied. "As long as the police don't get involved, he's cool with it."

Paul's eyebrows rose slightly, as though he was a bit surprised. He glanced around the room again and she could hear the heavy beat of the music from the other side of the door. There was a reason they chose a house that was so secluded. No neighbors for miles to make noise complaints.

Roisin pushed off from the door and started walking towards him slowly.

"So… Paul… what brings you here tonight?" she asked playfully. For a moment, the thought that she had never been this reckless crossed her mind, but she quickly pushed it aside.

He chuckled, a deep sound that sent chills up and down her spine.

"I wasn't sure at first, but well, now I think it was you," he said. Roisin's eyes widened slightly as he shook his head, almost as though he hadn't meant to say that. Must be the effect she was clearly having on him. He quickly recovered, smiling at her again. "Embry and Quil wouldn't shut up about the last party, so though I'd check it out."

"Well, I'm glad you did," she said, now standing just in front of him and lifting her chin slightly so she could look into his eyes.

"Yea, me too," he breathed just before his hands grabbed her waist again and he pulled her against him roughly, his lips descending on hers again.

Roisin swore she had felt fireworks the first time he kissed her, but this was even more intense, all rational thought completely leaving her mind as she wrapped her arms around his neck. There was heat in the kiss and for a moment, she thought she might explode as his hands began wandering everywhere.

She could feel something building inside her. Something strange and foreign, but not completely unwelcomed. Paul reached down, his hands squeezing her ass before he lifted her up and she brought her legs around him. They turned and Paul walked over to her bed, somehow managing to lower her down gently. He started to pull away, but Roisin wouldn't have that, pulling him back towards her and taking his lips in another heated kiss.

He had nearly crashed down on top of her, but managed to keep himself hoisted up on one elbow as his free hand roamed down her side and then to her back, searching for a way to get her top off. Roisin arched up towards him, wanting to feel their bodies touching as much as possible.

His lips left hers, but before she could whimper in complaint, they reconnected with a sensitive spot on her neck and she gasped. She could feel him smile against her skin before continuing.

She was then slightly aware that someone was knocking on the wall, but ignored it. Paul did as well, his fingers finally making their way up to the clasp at the base of her neck that held her top together. But then the knocking came louder, more urgent.

Paul growled, pushing away from her as he glared at the door. Roisin found herself even more turned on if that was possible. When the knocking sounded again, he pushed off the bed and stalked to the door. Roisin sat dazed on the bed for a moment, before managing to push up and follow him.

He unlocked the door and yanked it open, the person on the other side jumping slightly in surprise. It was the guy from earlier - Jared.

"What?" Paul growled.

"Sorry. I didn't want to do this - I swear - but something's wrong with Embry," he said.

Just that line was enough to shock Roisin back into full awareness. Something was wrong? Shit. They didn't need any issues.

"Let Jacob take care of it," Paul said, starting to shut the door. But Jared's hand shot up, blocking him.

"No, this is serious," he said, his face conveying just how bad it was.

Roisin's heart stopped for a moment. Shit. Shit. Shit. She knew they shouldn't have let the other fae stay. And that she should have stayed out in the party, not gone off in some sort of lust-induced haze. What the hell was wrong with her?

"What's wrong?" she asked, pushing Paul aside slightly. Jared looked over at her and shook his head.

"I'm not sure. Think maybe he had too much," he said, though there was an odd look on his face. As though he didn't think that was possible. "Did he have a lot to drink before?"

Roisin shook her head quickly. There wasn't even any alcohol at the party to begin with, though she wasn't sure how to explain that right now. There was still a bit of a fog over her that made it difficult to come up with a logical, scientific reason for why they had something that tasted like alcohol, but really wasn't.

 _Think, Roisin,_ she urged herself.

"We… it's all been watered down. But even then, I didn't see him drink that much. Unless he brought his own. But… we should check on him," she said, already walking out of the room. "Where is he?"

****

Paul followed Jared and Roisin through the party towards the other side of the house. They made their way down a hallway past the kitchen and came to another door that was slightly open. Roisin rushed in ahead of them.

He was still a bit dazed from the powerful reaction he had with Roisin and the imprint. And slightly pissed at being interrupted. But the worried look on Roisin's face had him seeing sense. And just made him that more attracted to her, seeing how much she seemed to genuinely care.

He was fairly sure anyone else would have blown it off as not their problem.

As he walked into the room, which looked far more masculine and darker than Roisin's despite the lights being on, he saw Embry on the bed, looking absolutely miserable. An older guy stood nearby with a woman clad in black leather, covered in tattoos with purple hair, watching on with concerned looks. Jacob and Quil were next to the bed, Quil holding a bucket.

"What happened?" Roisin demanded as she pushed them aside and dropped to her knees next to the bed, pushing the hair back from Embry's forehead. "Christ, he's burning up."

"He always runs a bit hotter," Quil said. Roisin looked up at him and then back down at Embry, who was groaning. Paul walked over to the end of the bed, Jared following, watching them closely.

His emotions were warring inside him. Part of him wanted to pounce on Embry for stealing Roisin's attention away, but the other part was touched to see her so concerned. He wasn't completely sure anyone else would have taken the time to check on someone they barely knew while at a wild party. And it was obvious that whatever was going on with him, Embry wasn't faking it.

A look of realization came over Roisin's face as she looked back at the older man.

"Did someone give him something, Sean?" she asked. Ah, this must be the uncle.

The man's expression didn't change at first, but then Paul noticed a slight hardening of his eyes that made him appear far more menacing than before. But only for a split second. It happened so fast that Paul wasn't completely sure he had even seen it to begin with.

What the hell was in his drink?

"Last I saw, Mae was giving him something to drink," he said.

While Paul wasn't completely sure, he felt as though he was saying something more than just that. Wait, did this Mae drug Embry? Whatever it was, it clearly set off Roisin as her eyes widened and a look of pure fury came over her face and he swore he felt a striking heat blast through the room as hot as the Sahara.

He took a step back, shaking his head slightly, but when he looked around, it appeared that Quil, Jacob and Jared hadn't felt anything. What the hell was wrong with him? Was this the imprint too?

"Ro," Sean said in warning. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, getting herself under control. "I gave him something. He should be okay in a few hours, but… someone should watch him."

"We can take him from here," Jacob said, turning to glare at Sean.

"I'm not sure that's a good idea," Sean said, maintaining his calm expression.

"Forgive me, but you don't know shit about us. We're taking him home," Jacob said. He then looked over at Quil, then Paul and Jared. "Come on, we're going."

"If he gets worse, bring him back here," Roisin said, standing and reaching out and grabbing Jacob's arm with a worried look.

He looked down at her hand and then back up at her, still glaring. Paul started towards him, wanting to shove Jacob away and punch him, but Jared stopped him.

He looked over at his best friend and Jared gave him a short shake of his head, silently imploring him to get it under control. Paul took a deep breath and looked back over, seeing Jacob still glaring down at Roisin.

"If he gets worse, we're taking him to a hospital," Jacob nearly spat before yanking his arm out of her grip and walking to the bed. "Help me, Quil."

Paul watched as they picked him up, Embry groaning, and then carried him out of the room.

"Promise me, if it gets worse, let me know," Roisin said, now suddenly at Paul's side. He nearly jumped, but then nodded.

"Sure," he said.

"I'm serious. You need to watch him closely tonight," she said, her eyes holding a certain desperation to them. Once again, Paul was conflicted. But he then nodded.

"I will," he said, though the last thing he wanted to do tonight was watch over a sick Embry. He wanted to stay here with her. Pick up where they left off even though the mood was pretty much over. Roison seemed to relax slightly, though there was still a lot of concern in her eyes. "Before I go… I should get your number. So I can let you know how he is."

Roisin looked back at him, her eyes wide a moment before her brilliant smile returned and she nodded. She reached into the back pocket of her jeans and pulled out a silver Razr, flipping it open and handing it over to him. He quickly put in his number and called it, feeling his cellphone buzz in his pocket before he ended the call.

He then handed the phone back to her, everything inside him wishing he didn't have to leave.

"Get home safe," she said. He nodded and started to walk away before stopping and pressing a quick kiss to her lips.

He then turned and walked away, but not before noticing the blush painting her cheeks and the small smile on her face. As he stepped out the door he heard her telling Sean to end the party now and send Mae to talk to her. Along with the order, he felt a surge of power coming from behind him that almost had him stumbling, but he continued on, not saying anything until they had stepped out the front door. It was gone almost as soon as he felt it.

"Did you feel that?" Jared asked. He looked over at him, his eyes wide.

"Yea," he replied, but then turned to look for Jared's car. "Weird."

"Tonight was all sorts of weird," Jared said. "Alcohol… it doesn't affect us."

"I know," Paul said, just now coming to that realization on his own. "Come on, we should follow them. Hopefully they don't take him home. His mom is going to be pissed."

"So, we're not going to talk about the fact that you just imprinted?" Jared said, a hint of laughter in his voice. Paul stopped and looked at him across the car.

"Not yet, but yea, later."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh man, I have had A LOT of fun coming up with how the imprint affects both Roisin and Paul. Really. And how fae affect the wolves in general. Still working out how this is going to factor in with the vampires, though. Since they are not mortal and technically not living… yea, I should start thinking about that more before I start writing their appearance…
> 
> Anyway, just a quick explanation – just because I've been dying to talk about my thought process for this story – so fae are naturally very alluring to normal humans. This is a common theme in a lot of fae stories and even folklore. But since the wolves aren't completely human, it affects them differently. The wolves are a bit more sensitive to fae, being not completely human themselves, as in they can see/feel things around the fae that humans don't. The allure most affects non-imprinted wolves (as seen with Embry) and not so much with imprinted wolves (as seen with Jared and Jacob – both were able to just shake it off or weren't pulled in at all... Quil isn't affected as well, but he's just Quil being Quil... he's imprinted on a toddler, so I thought it only fair that he should get/want to explore things with girls his own age and all). As Paul as imprinted on Roisin, he's going to see and feel even more than the others, though at the moment, he's chalking everything up to the imprint. But yea, that intense "HOLY COW I REALLY WANT TO HAVE SEX WITH HER RIGHT NOW!" that's a combination of the fae allure and the imprint. In case it wasn't obvious and all… And it's going to REALLY affect Roisin even more since she's not human as well until they both startling adjusting and settling into it, but we'll get into that a bit more in the next chapter…
> 
> And, I feel like I should apologize for Jacob coming off as a total ass so far… I don't usually see him that way, but it is coming from Paul's perspective, so… don't blame me, blame Paul? (God, that's a weak argument… but whatever… this is how he is for now…) Man, I've always written him as a good buddy (or not had him in the story at all) so it feels a bit weird for me, but it fits the story and canon, when you really think about it... Anyway...
> 
> Thanks for reading and following!


	7. Cold Day in the Sun

Roisin was beyond furious as she waited for Sean to bring in Mae. How could she be so reckless? And especially after Roisin had specifically said no fae wine. What the hell was she thinking?

Roisin could hear people leaving the house, loud choruses of disappointment that things were ending early. Sean and Cara had gone out and turned off the music, shouting for everyone to go home, leaving her in his bedroom where she was currently standing still, almost shaking from anger.

"What's going on?" Mae asked, walking into the room. "Why are you ending things? This is _not_ going to help our reputation."

Roisin spun around, fixing her eyes on her best friend. Mae's eyes widened as she took a step back, her face flushing as a blast of heat rushed out from Roisin, her wings now flaring up behind her.

"I don't give a flying fuck about our reputation right now. What the actual hell, Mae!? Fae wine!? Where did you even get it!?" Roisin shouted, Mae now cowering under the weight of the power in her voice. "You could have seriously hurt Embry!"

"It wasn't much! Just a little bit," Mae whimpered.

"I DON'T CARE IF IT WAS A FUCKING DROP! I SAID NO FAE WINE!" Roisin roared, flames flashing in her eyes. "Thank the goddesses Sean was able to give him a healing elixir, but it made him sick! Like physically sick! Not to mention, you KNOW what happens when mortals drink too much!"

"One of the solitary fae had it and gave me some. Embry took the cup from my hand and drank it! I swear! I didn't give it to him!" Mae shouted back, now pressed up against the wall as Roisin advanced on her. "You know I'm telling the truth!"

Roisin glowered at Mae a few moments, taking in her eyes wide in fear and her hands up. She knew that Mae couldn't lie. None of their kind could. Though that didn't mean they couldn't bend the truth.

"You swear that you didn't intend to give it to him?" Roisin asked, no longer shouting though her scowl remained. Mae gulped.

"It was mine. For me," she said. "No other mortals had any."

Roisin noted her wording, but there wasn't much she could do about it. She only hoped would be no lasting effects on Embry. She had never seen a mortal react that way to fae wine.

"If something bad happens to him or any other mortal because of this, I _will not_ forgive you this time," Roisin said, still scowling at Mae. "No more parties."

Mae gulped and nodded, looking mildly relieved.

"Got it," she said.

"Good," Roisin said before turning and striding out of Sean's room.

She made her way across the now empty great room, seeing that the solitary fae had stuck around and were now cleaning up. She knew she should help, but at the moment, she really just needed to be alone for a moment as her surge of anger began to pass and she was suddenly feeling rather tired..

After she walked into her room, she shut the door behind her and walked over, falling back on her bed, her mind reeling. She was truly worried about Embry, but now that the danger seemed to be over - at least she hoped - it was hard to remain focused on that with her thoughts now turning back to Paul.

Just being there again, lying on her bed, she couldn't help as memories of what had been going on before Jared knocked on the door flooded her mind. Her eyes slid closed and for a moment she could almost feel Paul's lips on her neck, his hand running up her back.

It had been like nothing she felt before. So intense. So consuming. And yet, she knew absolutely nothing about him other than his name. Paul. Her eyes flew up as she stared at the ceiling, now only thinking of him.

His confident smirk. Smoldering eyes. How she felt both safe and desired in his arms. And somehow… whole. It was all strange and wonderful and Roisin wished that they had had more time together. She then remembered that he had given her his number. Sitting up, Roisin reached in her pocket and pulled out her cellphone, quickly finding it. She saved it and stared at it a few moments.

She was dying to talk to him, but wondered if it was too soon. Would she come off as clingy? Oh wait. She had asked him to let her know about Embry. Right. She could use that as an excuse to talk to him. That wouldn't seem clingy at all.

Smiling, Roisin opened a text message and began typing.

****

Paul glanced at his phone for the 30th time as he and Jared made their way over to Jacob's house where they had left Embry after the party the night before. They stuck around a bit - just until Sue Clearwater looked him over and assured everyone that he was fine. Whatever was in his system would pass out of it soon enough with their increased metabolism and healing ability. Embry had vomited up all the contents of his stomach and then some, but had settled down enough to pass out by the time they left, though he still looked rather green.

Paul hadn't even wanted to stay that long, but when he got Roisin's text asking after Embry, he felt like he owed it to her to make sure he wasn't going to die. And he wasn't, though the way Embry had been moaning on about it, you almost thought that he was.

"You're doing it again," Jared said with a chuckle. Paul glanced at him. "That's easily the third time in the last 30 seconds. Dude, you just replied to her text. Give her a moment."

Paul just glared at him and returned to looking at his phone. Since she texted him last night, they had been going back and forth and he almost stayed up the rest of the night waiting for her to reply after the last text he sent. He had been about to call her, wanting nothing more than to hear her voice again, when she had started messaging again this morning. And Paul reminded himself that she didn't know about the imprint, so he would need to watch it and not come on too strong.

His phone buzzed and he looked down at it, immediately happy to see that it was from Roisin. But before he could reply, Jared pushed open the front door to Jacob's house and Paul shoved his phone into his pocket. They looked around, finding Embry seated on the couch watching TV as Billy and Jacob watched on. He looked over and grinned at them.

"Ah, more visitors," he said, obviously recovered from whatever had been wrong with him.

They still weren't sure what it was, but had all come to the conclusion that it was likely just him reacting to some sort of weird, foreign alcohol he had never tried before and nothing more.

Sue had done a home drug test on him and it wasn't a positive for any of the normal recreational drugs, though there was always the chance that it had already burned out of his system. She had taken some blood and said she would try and run it the next time she was at work to see if anything else popped up.

"I'm only doing this because Roisin asked about you. And now you seem fine, so I'm out," Paul said, already turning to leave.

"Really? After last night, you seriously don't think anything is going on?" Jacob said, frowning at him. "For all we know, Mae drugged him!"

Paul narrowed his eyes at him, feeling a wave of annoyance and anger coming over him. He was tired and cranky and the last place he wanted to be on his day off was here.

"Really, Jake? You heard Sue. There was nothing in his system," Jared said. "It was probably just Embry not being able to stomach whatever the hell she was drinking."

"She hasn't run his blood yet. Could still find something," Jacob said, not relenting. "Something is going on with _them_ and this is proof."

Already Paul felt his hackles rising, not liking the tone of voice Jacob was using. This was his imprint he was talking about. Jared noticed and moved to stand slightly in front of him, probably so he could hopefully block him should he try to go for Jacob.

"It doesn't mean anything. You're just paranoid and looking for a problem where there isn't one," Jared continued, somehow managing to keep his voice calm, though even Paul could hear the annoyance in his voice. "And like it or not, you're going to have to get used to _them_. Roisin is Paul's fucking imprint."

"What?" Billy asked. "Paul finally imprinted?"

Paul looked over, finding an amused look on the older man's face and finally started to relax a bit. Though Jacob just huffed and rolled his eyes.

"Yea, last night at the party," Jared said, glancing back at him with a smile. "About damn time, if you ask me."

"I don't care if she's his imprint. You're both telling me that you felt absolutely nothing weird last night?" Jacob continued to push.

Paul was about to bark out a negative answer, but then stopped, remembering how intense his imprint had been. How he wanted nothing more than to spend the entire night - and let's be honest, most of today - in bed with Roisin and could barely control himself at first. But then again, he remembered that imprinting was a bit different for everyone. That didn't necessarily mean anything was out of the ordinary.

"I felt completely fine," Jared said with a shrug. He looked at Paul. "I mean, I'd ask you. But you imprinted."

"Did it really have to be Roisin?" Embry whined from the couch. Paul scowled at him, which had Embry snapping his mouth shut.

"You know we can't control it," Paul got out, though it still sounded more like a growl than he intended.

"Dude, relax. Sorry. I get it," Embry said, his hands up.

"So, Roisin, is it?" Billy asked. Paul looked back at him, seeing the old man leaning back in his wheelchair, his arms crossed over his chest as he smiled.

"Don't encourage him, Dad," Jacob groaned. "They were practically fu-"

"What were you about to say?" Paul growled, cutting him off and starting towards him. Jacob could say whatever he wanted about Paul, but he was not about to disrespect Roisin.

Jacob's eyes widened slightly as Jared grabbed Paul's arm and held him back. When he saw Jared had a good grip on him, Jacob's scowl returned.

"All I was going to say is that it seemed a bit… too much," Jacob said.

"Only because you imprinted on an infant," Jared said with a chuckle. "It's different for us. Trust me, I struggled to keep my hands to myself when I first imprinted on Kim."

"I really don't want to hear this," Embry whined, dropping his head into his hands. "About Roisin or Kim…"

"Be patient, Embry. It'll happen," Billy said. He then turned his eyes back to Paul. "So, Roisin, is it? Heard they moved into the McLaren place."

"Yea, really fixed it up," Paul said, relaxing slightly. He then remembered the text he had yet to read and suddenly his phone was burning a hole in his pocket. "She's… well, she's gorgeous. But I admit I didn't really get a chance to talk to her much."

He shot a frown at Embry.

"Not like you were taking much of an opportunity to _talk_ to her with your tongue down her throat," Embry grumbled. "And I seriously thought last night I'd-" He then stopped, his eyes wide as his mouth snapped shut again and he looked nervously at Paul. "They moved here from LA. Live with their uncle Sean. She's a senior at Forks High. And that's all I know."

Paul took a deep breath, knowing full and well what Embry had been about to say, but choosing to not let it get to him. Nothing had happened between him and Roisin. And now nothing ever would.

Billy chuckled, drawing his attention again, though Jacob looked as sour as ever, a betrayed look on his face as he watched his father.

"Seems you've got your work cut out for you. Good luck," he said. Paul nodded. He then felt his phone buzz in his pocket and immediately reached down and pulled it out. Though his smile faded when he saw it was Mike.

He debated on answering it, but finally gave in.

"Hey," he said, turning to walk outside.

"Ah, man. Look, I know it's your day off, but I have a raging hangover. Is there anything I can do to get you to cover for me?" Mike pleaded.

"Maybe you shouldn't have drank so much," Paul said, now glaring even though he knew Mike couldn't see him.

"I swear! I didn't think it was that much! But as soon as I got home, I felt horrible. Tried to sleep it off, but it's bad," Mike moaned. "I barely managed to get the store open. Thank god it's not been busy today."

Paul took a deep slow breath in and let it out. He was fairly sure Mike wasn't as hungover as he let on.

"I'll seriously owe you one," Mike said.

While he knew it was unlikely Mike would ever pay him back, Paul knew it was smart to take the shift. He needed the extra money and could find some way to use it to his advantage later on.

"What time do I need to be there?" Paul asked.

"Preferably as soon as you can get here, but maybe in an hour at the most?" Mike said, suddenly sounding much better.

"Fine," Paul growled, hanging up as he heard Mike start to thank him.

He then remembered the text. As he began walking back to his house, he went to his messages, instantly feeling better.

_Can't wai again._

****

Roisin floated into the kitchen the morning after the party. Literally.

"What's got you in a good mood?" Sean asked, one part amused and two parts confused.

Roisin settled on the stool, folding her wings behind her, and propped her chin in her hands, sighing happily.

"Just happy," she said. Sean gave her a concerned look and walked over, placing his hand against her forehead.

"Okay, something seems off," he said. Roisin just shrugged and smiled. "Do you or do you not remember that Mae gave a mortal fae wine last night?"

"It was an accident," Roisin said, reaching for a pitcher of orange juice he had put out and an empty glass.

"Seriously. What the fuck is wrong with you?" Sean asked.

Truthfully, she wasn't sure what was going on with her. Well, no, she had an idea. Once the anger had worn off about Mae and Embry, all she could think about was Paul. She had fallen asleep listening to love songs and woken up thinking only of him. When she could see him again. Perhaps she should call him. Was it too soon? Nah, it wasn't. She really wanted to hear his voice again, already feeling tingles spread throughout her body at the thought of it.

Though she wanted to feel his arms around her more than that. She had had more than one dream last night of what could have happened between them if they hadn't been interrupted.

"Ro… I'm a bit worried," Sean said.

"Why? Everything is fine. More than fine. It's glorious," Roisin said, giggling.

Sean's mouth dropped open as Cara walked into the kitchen and stopped, seeing the deliriously happy look on Roisin's face and then turned to Sean.

"Who gave her fae wine?" she asked immediately.

"I didn't have any!" Roisin insisted, turning to look at her. "I'm just… in love…"

"Okay, someone has slipped her fae wine. That's gotta be it," Cara said, looking at Sean. He just looked at her and then back at Roisin, who was now humming to herself.

He swiveled the stool around so that she was facing him, studying her closely.

"Really, I'm completely fine," Roisin insisted.

"No… you're not," Sean said, still studying her. "This is strange, even for you."

"I swear. No fae wine," she replied, a somewhat serious expression on her face. She then lifted three fingers into the air. "Scouts' honor." She then dissolved into giggles.

Cara huffed and turned towards the archway.

"MAE! GET YOUR SKINNY ASS IN HERE!" she shouted.

Soon enough, Mae shuffled in, a scowl on her face and dressed in slinky, barely there pajamas with a sleep mask up on her forehead.

"What?" she grumbled. Cara pointed at Roisin.

"What did you do?" she demanded. Mae looked at Roisin and then back at Cara.

"I didn't do anything. Maybe she finally lost the stick up her ass," she replied, then chuckling a bit. "About time."

"Mae," Sean said, his voice low with warning. Mae's eyebrows shot up as she saw the shadows beginning to swirl around him and heard the menace in his voice. "What did you do?"

"I swear to the goddesses, I didn't do anything!" Mae shouted. "Okay, so Embry drank some of my fae wine last night. Yes, that happened. But I sure as hell didn't do anything to Ro!"

Sean and Cara stared at her a few moments and then looked back at Roisin, who had stood and was now waltzing with herself around the kitchen.

"Shit. What do we do?" Cara asked, casting a worried glance towards Sean. He only shook his head.

"Some day… my Paul will come," Roisin sang.

"Wait, Paul?" Mae asked. Roisin nodded as she kept dancing. Mae looked over at Sean and Cara. "It's the mortal guy she was with last night. I saw them going at it on the dance floor before she took him to her room."

Sean looked even more confused. Mortals didn't affect fae. At least they hadn't before. And they shouldn't - especially not one as powerful as Roisin. He took a deep breath and walked over, stopping Roisin mid turn and forcing her to look at him. He hated doing this, but he needed to get her back to normal and it was his best guess on how to do it.

He gripped her face, forcing her to look into his eyes. Hers were slightly glazed over. He began to glare, mustering up his Shadow side.

"Roisin," he said, his voice low, not even needing to search for darkest fears. She had long ago shared them with him and he hated having to use them against her. But it was the only way he could think of to get her to snap out of it.

Roisin's eyes widened as her mouth dropped open and tears began to pool in her eyes. In his mind, he could see what she was seeing. A palace made of ice. A crown of ice burning into her skin. A lifeless, snowy landscape stretching on as far as the eye could see. And then nothing but cruel, ice blue eyes.

"No," she whimpered, trying to jerk out of his grip, but he held onto her.

"Snap out of it, Ro," he ordered.

Finally, he let go of her as Roisin stumbled back, falling into the fridge and gasping for air. He took a few steps back, waiting. She then looked at him, confusion filling her face.

"What the hell was that for?!" she shouted, pushing off the fridge, flames dancing in her eyes.

"Good to see you back to normal," he replied. Roisin just blinked and shook her head.

"I… what?" she asked, looking back at him.

"You were waltzing around the kitchen, singing, 'Someday my Paul will come,'" Cara said dryly. Roisin looked over at her and then back at Sean.

"I… oh," she said, remembering everything, though it felt like it wasn't her. Like it was someone else. She shook her head again.

"Maybe you should stay away from this Paul until we figure out what's going on," Sean said cautiously.

"No," Roisin said, the flames returning to her eyes and power emanating from her voice.

Sean backed up a bit more, feeling the heat radiating off her. He didn't want to push her too far, but it was obvious that whoever Paul was, he was the reason behind her strange behavior.

Realizing what she was doing, Roisin immediately looked away, shaking her head again as she brought her hands up to her temples.

"God, I'm sorry, Sean. I didn't mean to do that," she said, her eyes now closed. She took a deep breath and slowly let it out before looking around the kitchen. Sean and Cara still looked worried, though Mae was amused. "I'm fine. I'm not sure what that was but, it's over."

"But who's to say that it doesn't happen again the next time you see him?" Sean asked, a concerned edge to his voice.

"Or maybe we can figure out what it is," she countered. Sean just stared at her. "Look, I can't explain it, but I still feel this… need… to see him again. To be around him. You remember how I felt off the last few days? It completely stopped when I saw him last night. And then _this_ happens today when I'm not with him. Maybe… maybe it's _not_ _being around him_ that's screwing with me."

Sean considered this and glanced over at Cara, then back at Roisin.

"I'm willing to consider this possibility," he finally conceded. "Regardless, we need to figure this out. Mortals shouldn't have this effect. Not on you. I don't like not knowing that this means."

"I know," Roisin said, frowning slightly.

While she was worried about what was happening to her, she still felt a sense of calm and happiness at the idea of seeing Paul again. It was almost as though she had found something that she hadn't realized was even missing in the first place.

"I heard from Embry that he works at that sporting goods store in town. The one we went to," Mae said lightly. Everyone in the room looked over at her. "Perhaps you should go pay a visit…"

"We don't know if he's working today. Besides, might be better to invite him here," Roisin said. "Controlled environment and all."

Mae just shrugged and turned to leave the kitchen.

"Do what you want. I'm going to hang out with some of the fae," she called out.

"Please stay out of trouble," Roisin called after her.

"Yes, mother!"

Roisin sighed and pulled her phone out of the pocket of her pajama pants then opened it.

"Here goes nothing…"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like I said, been having so much fun creating a fae world within Twilight and playing around with the imprint. I've gotten a lot of writing done lately, unfortunately it's been later chapters, so still need to take a few days in between posts. But I'm glad that I did because I've now come up with a better ending and don't have to do a ton of editing to the chapters already written to fit in the storyline I came up with.
> 
> Gah, guys, I'm loving Roisin and Paul together. Which I know is a bit hard to see at the moment since they literally just met but trust me. It's getting better…
> 
> Thanks everyone for reading and following!


	8. You Are My Sunshine

Paul stared down at his phone as he sat behind the cash register, willing Roisin to text him back. But she hadn't said a word since she asked to meet up today and he told her that he had to work, but perhaps they could meet up afterwards. He then spent the last hour furiously cursing Mike and his likely-not-real hangover. Was he even at the party? Paul hadn't seen him, but then again, once he saw Roisin, he was fairly caught up in her and the imprint.

But the asshole didn't even look sick when he got to the store and had the audacity to grin and bounce out as soon as Paul arrived.

It was bad enough that the idiot had made a mess of the inventory system - again - in the short time he had been there that Paul had to fix. That was probably the real reason Mike had called him to take his shift. That and so he could go slack off at the beach or something.

Sighing, he put the phone down on the counter and ran his fingers through his short hair, glad that Jared wasn't there. If he saw Paul like this, he would give him so much hell about it and never stop. He almost wished he hadn't made fun of Jared and Kim so much. Or any of the others who imprinted. Knowing them, the next pack meeting was likely to include a lot of comments and ribbing now that he had finally done it. All of it payback.

But he couldn't stop thinking about her. Wishing that he could have gone over to her house today instead of working. He had been tempted to call Mike back in and invent a family emergency or something. There was no guilt in the lie; he wasn't supposed to be working today anyway. But then he remembered the cost of tuition and books and knew that he needed whatever extra cash he could get his hands on.

Frustrated, Paul sat back in the chair, staring out at the empty store, which was slightly unusual for a Saturday. But then again, maybe everyone was already outdoors, enjoying the unusually warm weather.

He then heard the front door chime and breathed a prayer of gratefulness that he could finally do something rather than sit around or clean as he hopped off the chair and turned. He then stopped in his tracks as he felt warmth envelope him while Roisin walked over, a bright smile on her face.

God, just why was it he couldn't stop thinking about summer whenever she was around? Maybe it was just the way she appeared, looking and acting like summer incarnate.

"Since you had to work, I thought I would come visit," she said, stepping over to lean against the counter.

"Certainly makes work easier," he replied, unable to stop grinning.

He then heard a throat clear and looked over, realizing that the man from the night before had come in with her. Paul hadn't even noticed him walking after Roisin.

"Right, I didn't get the chance to really introduce you last night. This is Sean. He looks out for me and Mae," Roisin said.

"Yea, I heard. Uncle, right?" Paul asked, holding his hand out to him.

A gatekeeper was a gatekeeper, and Sean looked like a gatekeeper. Paul needed to make a good impression if he wanted to keep seeing Roisin.

"We're related," Sean replied, shaking Paul's hand, an intense look in his dark blue eyes. He was a bit off-putting in a way, Paul felt, but he couldn't quite figure just why.

Outside of being far better dressed than others in Forks and looking more like a movie star than an uncle, there wasn't anything about him that looked overtly threatening. He was a bit taller, but lean. Looked as though he worked out, but not a ton. No, it definitely wasn't his outward appearance. It was as though Sean carried a small sense of foreboding with him. But just as Paul sensed it, it was gone. He turned his gaze back to Roisin, instantly smiling again.

"How's Embry?" she asked.

"Oh yea. Went over to see him this morning. He's completely fine. Our friend's mom is a nurse and she looked him over. Said it must have been some sort of weird reaction to whatever he drank last night," he replied. Roisin looked relieved. "Though pretty sure he won't be at the next party you have. Had to bribe her not to tell his mom and she was pretty pissed that we dragged her out of bed. Made him promise he wouldn't go back."

"Yea, well, I don't think we're going to be having anymore parties after that incident," Roisin said with a sigh. But then she brightened up again. "Since I'm here, I thought you could help me out. I really want to get a pair of hiking boots, but I have no idea which ones are good."

"It's kind of my job," Paul said with a chuckle as he stepped out from around the counter and led her across the store over to a display on a wall with a dozen or so different types of shoes. "What kind of hiking are you looking to do? Anything involving serious rock climbing? Or just a leisurely stroll through the forest?"

Roisin scrunched her face in contemplation as she browsed the display and Paul couldn't tear his eyes from her. While last night he had definitely been overwhelmed with the lust side of things, in the light of day those impulses had faded. They were still there just under the surface, but it was easier to ignore them.

Granted that also had to do with the fact that they were in public and her uncle was standing not far off, watching them.

He took a moment to really study her without flashing lights or loud music. Her features were delicate, though there was a smattering of freckles that ran across her face he had missed before, sat upon sun-kissed skin that appeared to glow. Her wavy hair was pulled back into a ponytail, revealing her long neck and dainty ears that came to a slight point.

Wait.

Paul blinked and looked away, then glanced back, seeing completely normal-looking ears. Okay, that was strange. But maybe it was just his lack of sleep. And well, she did appear a bit pixieish.

Roisin glanced over at him, smiling slightly.

"I think I'm more the leisurely stroll in the forest type," she said.

Paul nodded and looked back at the display, walking over to it and browsing around a bit before reaching for one.

"Right, then this should do. Sturdy and good support, but not too cumbersome. Lighter and more flexible, but still waterproof, which you'll need out here," he said, handing it to her. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Sean leaned against the front counter, watching the exchange closely.

Damn, did he always hover like this?

Paul turned his attention back to Roisin as she examined the shoe, bending the sole a bit. She then nodded and looked over at him.

"Alright, guess I should try them on," she said, still smiling.

"What size?" Paul asked, already turning back to the stacks of boxes underneath the display.

"Um, five," she said. Paul glanced at her and then down at her feet, currently clad in a pair of Converse sneakers. "Small feet run in my family."

Sean snorted behind them, causing Paul to glance over at him and then turn back to locate the right shoes in the right size. Whatever. It took a while, but he finally located a size five and a half and stood up, walking over to kneel in front of Roisin, who was now seated on a bench and had pulled off one shoe.

"Typically, you get a half size up," Paul explained, pulling the shoe out. "Taking consideration for wool socks, which you'll want if you do any hiking in the late fall or winter. Or really anytime. It's good to have comfortable, thick socks."

Roisin wrinkled her nose.

"Not sure I'll be out much in the winter. Can't stand it," she said as Paul undid the laces on the hiking shoes. He chuckled as he looked up at her, though he didn't miss the underlying scorn in her voice.

She really must hate winter.

"Hate to say it, but you probably picked the wrong place to move to," he replied. "It gets cold here starting around November and lasts a good three and half months, though more so when you get up into the mountains."

"I'll be sure to stay out of the mountains then," Roisin said, the dislike somehow gone and a laugh replacing it.

Paul couldn't help the flutter in his stomach at the sound. He took a deep breath and tried to stay focused on what he was doing. But it was hard. He swore he saw a shiver run up Roisin's body when he took her small foot in his hand and slid it into the hiking boot. And it was hard to keep his eyes from running up her long legs. He knew she could feel it too, the imprint. But at the moment, he still hadn't really stopped to consider just how he was going to tell her.

Oh, right. And that he turned into a giant wolf.

"Try that," he said, leaning back on his heels after he had tied up the laces.

Roisin stood, testing out the shoe as she walked around a bit and then hopped up and down a few times. Paul watched her feet for a moment and looked up, searching for any sign of discomfort.

"I'm not sure what I'm supposed to be looking for," Roisin admitted with a smile. "I mean, it feels… okay. Not too uncomfortable."

"It'll be a bit stiff before you break them in, which I suggest you do before you go out in them the first time, otherwise you'll get a ton of blisters," he said, slightly in awe that he could keep his thoughts straight.

Every time he met her eyes, all he wanted to do was take her in his arms. But he found the more time he spent with her, the calmer he felt. Meaning he was starting to adjust to the imprint. Good, at least this meant he could act normal around her and not like a lovesick idiot.

Or a horny teenaged boy.

"You know a lot about this sort of thing," she said, crossing her arms in front of her and tilting her head to the side, a curious look coming over her face. Paul just shrugged.

"My dad's worked in the parks service since before I was born. He's always outdoors and all. Guess I picked up some things. And well, I spend a decent amount of time outdoors myself," he replied, silently adding that most of the time nowadays it was on four legs.

Roisin's eyebrows rose in interest as she glanced at Sean and then smiled down at Paul.

"Well, I think these will do just fine. I'll take them," she said, moving to sit down and remove the shoe.

Paul quickly took it and situated it back in the box while she put her shoe back on and tied it. They both stood at the same time, nearly colliding. Roisin braced herself by grabbing onto his arms, and for a second, there was a sudden spike of heat where she touched him. But then the sensation was gone, and she let go of him, her cheeks turning slightly pink. She then moved away, and Paul nearly reached out to grab her and pull her back, but then remembered her uncle standing nearby.

Glancing cautiously at him, Paul cleared his throat and walked over to the counter, putting the box down and moving to the register. He scanned the barcode and stared at the screen.

"That's $100," he said, looking over at the two. Roisin reached into a bag slung across her body and pulled out a wallet, then handed over a credit card.

As he finished ringing her up, he swallowed and glanced nervously at her. He then took a deep breath. He would rather not ask her out in front of her uncle, but it looked like there was no way around it unless he wanted to do it via text. And for some reason, he didn't want to do that. Not when the opportunity was staring him in the face right now.

"If you're looking for some good hiking spots, I can take you out," he offered. Roisin's eyebrows rose in surprise and then she gave him a brilliant grin.

"Yea, I would like that," she said as she accepted her card and the receipt. Paul then quickly slid the box into a plastic bag and held it to her.

"Next Saturday good?" he asked.

Roisin nodded. She then leaned against the counter, as though she intended to stay put for a bit longer. Honestly, Paul had hoped she would, though wouldn't mind if her uncle suddenly had a few errands to run around town.

He apparently had other ideas.

"We need to go, Ro," Sean said, slightly impatiently. She glanced over at him, frowning.

"We don't have anything to do today," she replied. Sean rolled his eyes.

"Ro. Come on," he said. "Homework."

She huffed and turned back to Paul, smiling again.

"I guess I'll see you next Saturday. Just text me where to go. Unless we run into each other before then," she said.

"Yea, sure," Paul said, nodding. He then watched as they walked towards the door, though Roisin gave him another brilliant smile before she stepped outside.

Sighing, Paul fell back on the chair. Okay, so things were going well so far. Right. He just needed to get to know her a bit, and then he could figure out a way to tell her the truth. Despite his slight worry over how all that was going to go, he felt a peace wash over him that he had never felt before as a smile graced his face. And he couldn't help as the anger over having to work today towards Mike seemed to slip away.

God, he was happy he found his imprint.

****

"I think that went well," Roisin said with a smile as Sean drove them back to the house. "I feel completely fine."

"Yea, but it didn't hit you until several hours later last time. I don't want you leaving the house until we know for sure that you won't go off the deep end again," Sean warned. Roisin huffed.

"I really don't see why this is all so… serious," she replied, crossing her arms in front of her. "It wasn't like I was hurting anyone. Just… off for a bit."

"Ro… you're a royal fae living in a town full of mortals. Not to mention, you're more powerful than I think you sometimes realize. If you can't keep yourself in check, things happen," he said cautiously. "And unfortunately, being here means anything strange or weird is going to stick out more and be harder to explain away."

"Yea, but it's not like it was bad," she countered. "And it was at home - no one saw me. Hell, even if they did, I'm pretty sure they wouldn't have found it weird. I'm supposed to be a teenager. Isn't that typical human teenager?"

"What if this is building up to something?" he asked, sending her a stern look.

"What on earth could it be building up to?" she replied in frustration.

"Do I need to remind you of New Orleans?" Sean asked with a sigh.

"This is completely different. And I knew exactly what I was doing in New Orleans," she snapped, now frowning at him. Sean just gave her a look. "Okay, so maybe I lost control just a little. But I've learned from my mistakes and I'm much more in control now."

"You're still only 150," Sean said, keeping his eyes on the road in front of him.

"I've been of age since I was 100," Roisin scoffed. "And out in the mortal world since I was 50. I think I can handle myself by now."

"Most of the time, yes, you are in good control of yourself. But we both know that there are times when you lose it. And you know full well what happens when you do," he retorted. "Fuck, Ro. You don't need me telling you this. You're Summer fae - by nature more volatile than others. And royal. More powerful than most royals - which we both know why." He gave her a pointed look that had her squirming in her seat. "All it takes is one flip-out and the next thing you know, there's a fucking hurricane blowing in."

She didn't like to think about the main reason she did occasionally lose it. And she knew Sean didn't bring it up a lot because he knew how difficult it was for her. Which meant he was really trying to drive in his point right now.

"I seriously doubt I could cause something as big as a hurricane," she said, looking out the window. "And I still don't see what this has to do with New Orleans. Completely different situations and _that_ was justified."

"You caused a club to burn down, Ro," Sean said flatly.

"Yes, because some asshole drugged and then tried to take advantage of my friend! How was I supposed to feel about that?!" Roisin shouted, the temperature in the car climbing exponentially.

Neither spoke for a time, though a sympathetic look came over Sean's face as he looked away from her. Roisin took a few deep breaths, calming down before she turned back to him.

"No one died or got too hurt, though _he_ deserved to, if you ask me," she said evenly. "And then we left town before Darraugh or anyone else found us. The police never connected us - though it's not like they could find anything anyway. Not then, at least. Still a bit incompetent, if you ask me..."

"I won't argue against the bastard deserving to get his ass kicked, but… you could have seriously hurt someone else. Someone who didn't deserve it," Sean said. He then heaved a heavy sigh. "I know that you're better with keeping things in check. But… I'm worried. You've never been like this with a mortal. With anyone. There's a lot we don't know about this situation, and I know you. You'll spend the rest of eternity punishing yourself if you were to accidentally hurt someone. I'm just trying to look out for you."

Roisin was quiet as she thought over his words. She knew he was right. But she didn't want to have to give up Paul. Felt like she couldn't when there was so much left to learn about him. While last night had been intense - and this morning strange - she had felt far more settled when she went into the shop to see him. More centered.

"Okay, how about this? Let's play it safe and see what happens the next couple of days before we try anymore experimenting," Sean said. Roisin glanced at him.

"And if I'm okay, I can go on a date with him next weekend?" she asked, a hopeful look in her eyes.

"Yea, I don't see why not," Sean begrudgingly said. "I have a feeling you'll go no matter what I say."

"I would. But I _would_ feel bad about it," Roisin replied. "I am grateful for everything you've done. I wouldn't have made it this long without you."

The air was heavy with the implication behind the statement, but it wasn't lost on either of them. Sean smiled slightly, glancing at her.

"Yea, I know. You wouldn't have made it two days if you hadn't run into me," he joked, now smirking. Roisin rolled her eyes. "And, again probably doesn't need to be said, but I'm going to say it anyway - be careful."

"Haven't we just determined that I won't see him until we know I won't hurt him or myself or anyone?" Roisin huffed in slight annoyance.

He really was starting to sound like a protective uncle.

"Not that," Sean replied. "I meant… try not to get too attached."

Roisin frowned as she looked out the window. Of course, she knew this. Every fae knew it. Mortals had shelf lives. And well, with the way most fae viewed mortals, getting attached wasn't an issue. But Sean knew that Roisin didn't share those views. While she knew they would leave Forks way before Paul got old and such, Roisin suddenly found the idea of leaving him at all difficult to swallow. But she wasn't about to admit that to Sean. He was already concerned enough, and she wasn't even sure just why she felt this strongly for someone she had literally met last night.

"You've never told me… have you ever gotten too attached?" she asked instead. Sean chuckled.

"No. When I was Shadow Court, mortals tended to not last that long around us," he replied.

Roisin looked over at him, feeling her stomach turn slightly. While all the courts had a fair amount of disdain for mortals, the Shadow Court enjoyed using them as toys and had a habit of breaking said toys. But she also knew that this was one of the reasons Sean had left. He hadn't enjoyed senseless slaughter or bloodsport.

"After that, it was easy to not get attached. Plus, I moved around so much I wasn't ever around any one mortal long enough. Though definitely had some fun," he said as he waggled his eyebrows at her, causing Roisin to roll her eyes and chuckle.

"Well, and suppose you had Cara," she then said, grinning deviously. Sean just smiled in return.

"Cara's always been around, yes," he said. He never said more than this about their… whatever it was. Relationship? Friendship? Roisin wasn't completely sure.

Oh, well. At least they had reached an agreement. She would stay home the rest of the weekend and if everything went well, she could see Paul again. A sudden spike of excitement hit her in the stomach, and she sighed as she turned to look out the window again. That was short-lived as a frown appeared as soon as she saw the sign that sat on Forks city limit.

"Goddamit, Mae," she groaned.

The sign had been painted over, instead of reading "Now Leaving Forks," it said, "Now Leaving Sporks."

"Seriously, Ro. It's not that bad," Sean said, not even bothering to cover his laughter.

"Yea, but she's supposed to be staying out of trouble. And especially after that whole ordeal with Embry," Roisin huffed. "I swear to the goddesses, she is pushing it this time."

"She's adjusting. And well, it's not like you've been spending as much time around her here as you usually do. _And_ you did tell her no more parties last night. Let her get it out of her system and she'll calm down," Sean said. Roisin shot him an incredulous look.

"You so sure about that?" she asked. Sean sighed.

"We won't let her get out of hand," he replied. "You know how she is. She acts out, but once you spend a girls' night with her, she behaves. For a time. And really, she could do a lot worse than graffiti a town sign."

Roisin sighed and nodded.

"Right. Okay. I'll give her my undivided attention the rest of the weekend since I'm under house arrest anyway. May even let some of the fae stick around and we can have a small party with just us," she said. Sean smiled.

"Oh, she'll love that."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Spent a lot of time working on this story today. Writing, figuring out background stuff and editing. So thought I might post a chapter (or two)…
> 
> As always, thank you for reading and following!


	9. Live in the Sunshine

"So, any ideas on how you're going to tell her?" Jared asked.

Paul sighed and glanced at his best friend as they walked down the road towards Sam's garage after getting off work for the day. Most of the packs would hang out there if they had nothing better to do. He figured he could stand a bit of "pack unity" before he settled in for a few hours of homework. Even though he was taking online courses, they somehow managed to have just as much work as being in an actual class.

And for the last three days, Jared had asked him the same question. And each time - this one included - Paul gave the same answer.

"I don't know," he said. "I mean, things are going okay. We've been texting non-stop. But… I definitely think it's too soon. I still barely know anything about her."

"Which is strange considering you can't put your damn phone down for two seconds," Jared replied with a laugh.

"Not like text conversations can get that deep," Paul said, frowning slightly.

The only truly personal information he knew about Roisin was that she moved here from LA with Mae and Sean. They moved around a lot, apparently, though she had yet to say why. She was a senior and actually liked school and studying. Spent a lot of time with her friends Tara, Megan and Trey when she wasn't with Mae - who was apparently getting on her nerves right now. And well, they were rich, though they never actually talked about that. It was just a given - they did buy and then renovate the McLaren house.

Outside of that, he knew her favorite season was summer (fitting, he thought); her favorite color was goldenrod (not yellow, goldenrod); she currently loved Fall Out Boy and OneRepublic (Paul made a mental note to expand her music horizons); and she was looking forward to their hiking date that weekend.

Hopefully a few hours alone out in the wilderness would give them a chance to go beyond surface level knowledge of each other. He found it odd that she never mentioned her or Mae's parents, even when he had mentioned his dad. Or any family, really. Just Mae or Sean. And well, Sean looked way too young to be her uncle, but maybe he was older than he appeared. Or there was a huge age gap between him and her parents.

It all only made Paul even more curious about what her story was and how the hell they had ended up in Forks to begin with. Who willingly chose to move to Forks from LA?

"I'm just going to stick with my plan. Get to know her better and then worry about when and how to tell her later," Paul said. "Maybe introduce her to the others first, get her familiar with everyone. I think she'll like Emily and Kim."

"And at least she already knows some of us. Or well, probably knows Embry the most," Jared quipped. Paul shot him a sharp look. "Relax. She's your imprint, not his. And for all his bragging, you know nothing _really_ happened between them. They made out once."

"I still don't like thinking about _that_ a whole lot," Paul replied, a small wave of anger spiking in him at the thought of Embry's hands on Roisin.

"Be glad we're no longer in the same packs then. Jacob had some complaints when they did patrol just after he met her," Jared replied with a chuckle. "Apparently, Embry wouldn't stop dreaming about her. And he's got a very active imagination."

"God, stop," Paul groaned. He seriously did not need images of Embry and Roisin making out in his head. Or doing anything else even if it was just Embry's imagination Jared laughed loudly.

"Seriously? After Sam and I were subjected to your little sex fantasy on patrol, you're going to complain about Embry?" he said.

"Christ, it wasn't even that much," Paul said. "I only let it slip because I got distracted by a scent that made me think of her…"

"Yea, and I'm going to give you shit about it to pay you back for the hard time you gave me about Kim. Though, come on, it's not like it was the first time any of us have been subjected to one of your sex dreams. Or anyone's, really," Jared said lightly. "We've all had 'em. Still have them. That's just human nature."

"Still doesn't mean I like you in all parts of my head," Paul replied.

Jared only gave Paul a mischievous grin.

"So, are you seriously thinking about taking her to the waterfall on your date?" he asked.

The waterfall was a notorious makeout spot just off the main trail near First Beach. And it had popped up in the aforementioned dream Paul had just after they had set their date to go hiking. And was unfortunately the only bit of said dream that Jared and Sam had seen.

Or maybe not, considering the rest of it had him acting like a sappy fool. He'd rather they see the R-rated version than _that_.

"Seriously, Jared?" Paul whined. Jared just laughed harder.

"Hey, it was your fantasy," he replied. "Though did give me some ideas for an upcoming date with Kim…"

"I don't want to hear this," Paul said immediately before Jared could continue. "Really, you don't have to share _everything_ with me."

"Eh, you'll see it in my head next time we shift together anyway," Jared said, completely unphased and still smiling. "And come on, I'm your best friend. Pretty sure we've both seen it all. I mean, definitely seen a lot of crazy shit in _your_ head."

Paul was silent a few moments, frowning slightly. Yet again the conversation had turned back to his past. While he knew Jared didn't mean anything by it, it still stung.

"Really hoping to not get into that anytime soon with Roisin," he replied, his voice tense.

While he was eager to learn more about her, the flip side of that was that she was going to learn more about him as well. Besides the packs and imprint, he wasn't sure how or even if he wanted to bring up his not-so-distant past. Though they had imprinted, she could still choose to reject it. To reject him. And his past seemed like a decent reason to that. At least in his opinion.

He was stuck in his small hometown with seemingly no future and Roisin was easily top of her class and came from a rich family. She could go anywhere, be anyone and certainly have anyone. Paul felt pretty sure that without the imprint, she wouldn't have given him a second glance.

"Nope, I am not going to let you have a pity party. You're a good guy, Paul. Always have been, even when you were running around with idiots. And you're a hard worker. Driven," Jared said, shoving Paul's shoulder slightly, the teasing completely gone from his voice. "You were just… misguided for a hile. You fucked up a bit. We all fuck up. Trust me, it could be worse. You could be some serial killer."

"What? Where did that even come from?" Paul asked after snorting, though overall appreciating his best friend's attempt to cheer him up. He wasn't completely sure he agreed with him, but it helped.

"Kim's on a true crime kick. Makes me watch Dateline and 48 Hours whenever we hang out now," Jared replied with a shrug.

"God, I seriously hope Ro's not into that," Paul said. Though he already knew that if she was, he would end up suffering through the damn shows if that was what she wanted.

Jared didn't reply as they walked into the garage, seeing Embry and Quil seated on an old couch up against the back wall and Jacob's legs peeking out from under a truck. Sam wasn't around, so Paul figured he must be in the office. He pulled out his phone again, seeing that Roisin had just messaged him.

"Thought you bozos had work," Quil said loudly.

"We did. Already finished," Jared replied, walking over to sit in an open lawn chair.

"And you couldn't find anything else to do?" Jacob's voice came from under the truck.

"What? And miss out on gracing you with our presence?" Jared said, grinning. "You should feel lucky."

Paul sat down in a chair next to him, already sending a reply as he smiled slightly and not paying much attention to the conversation. He and Roisin were in the midst of a friendly debate on the latest episode of "Heroes."

"The only person feeling lucky around here is probably Paul," Quil quipped in return. Paul looked up at the mention of his name. "Though what's this? Not even a week and she's already got you whipped?"

"Hey Quil, how's that non-existent girlfriend of yours?" Paul shot back, sliding his phone back into his pocket and grinning at him. The smile slid off the younger guy's face as Embry and Jared howled in laughter.

"Really should come up with a better insult, you know. Been using that one for too long. And for the record, I've been talking to Mae," he said, glaring at them.

"You mean you text her and she replies two days later with one word," Embry said, still barely containing his laughter. "And it's not like you care about her all that much thanks to the imprint…"

"Thanks for reminding me… And she's just busy," Quil grumbled. "And apparently there's no more parties. Thanks, Embry."

"Shouldn't be going to them anyway," Jacob said, sliding out from under the truck, sitting up and glaring at the two.

"God, give it up, Jake!" Embry exclaimed, his face pinched in annoyance. "Getting real sick and tired of your Debbie Downer attitude."

"He's right. You really shouldn't be going to parties. Should be focused on your senior year and graduating," Sam said sternly as he walked into the garage, his clothes covered in grease stains and a frown directed at Quil and Embry.

"They went too!" Quil said, pointing at Jared and Paul.

"Yea, and they're not in high school anymore," Sam said, walking over to his work bench and picking up a clipboard.

"But they're still underage too," Embry added. "And I know Paul was drinking."

Paul just rolled his eyes. God, they were such snitches.

"They're 18. I'm not about to order them how to live their lives," Sam said, looking down at the clipboard, though he glanced up at Jared and Paul. "So long as they don't go around making stupid decisions and getting into trouble."

"Nothing to worry about here. We're settled men now," Jared proclaimed, causing Paul to roll his eyes. "Our wild days are over."

"Yea… that's debatable," Sam muttered, looking back down at the clipboard, though there was a hint of a smile on his face as the others laughed and Jared frowned.

"Hey, Paul. Did you see the Forks sign this weekend?" Quil asked, abruptly changing the subject.

"What? That some juvenile idiot changed it to Sporks? Yea," Paul replied, pulling his phone back out after feeling it buzz.

"Still, pretty funny," Quil said.

Paul just shrugged. Not like it was the first time someone had graffitied the damn thing. Not sure why Quil found it so funny. Well, that wasn't true. Quil often found stupid things funny. At least in Paul's opinion.

"Yea, well a lot of shit like that has been going on," Jacob said, resting his elbows on his knees. "Lot of places in Forks are getting graffitied with weird signs."

"Do not start in on your stupid conspiracy theory again," Embry moaned, falling back on the couch. "It's bad enough you won't stop thinking about it on patrol. Are you going to subject us to this 24/7 now?"

"It's not a conspiracy theory," Jacob insisted, his frown deepening. His dark eyes then settled on Paul. "And you seriously haven't felt anything strange around Roisin?"

"I'm not sure how you think there's a connection between your weird mojo shit, Ro and the stupid pranks going on in Forks," Paul said, starting to frown in return.

"I've checked with Charlie and they are happening more often. And..." Jacob paused as he looked around the group, then settled his gaze on Paul again, "it all started right after your new girlfriend moved into town."

Paul narrowed his eyes at Jacob, starting to slowly stand from his chair. This was his imprint that Jacob was accusing, and he was for damn sure not going to let it stand. Even though the last few pranks she had told him about seemed pretty ingenious and he'd be proud of Roisin if it was her - filling the entrance to the high school with hundreds of balloons? Yea, he'd like to see that.

But Jacob's tone was pushing it. And Paul was pretty sure she would tell him if she was involved, but it didn't seem like her, seeing how focused she was on her grades, anyway.

"Hey, okay, let's all calm down," Jared said, jumping to his feet and pushing Paul back down in his chair, though he continued to glare at Jacob. "Look, I seriously doubt any of this is connected. You know how shit gets in high school. Probably just some bored seniors."

"Yea, aren't Mae and Roisin seniors?" Jacob shot back.

"It's not Ro," Paul growled, starting to shake from the effort to control his anger.

"Alright, enough!" Sam shouted, getting everyone's attention. Paul instantly cooled down as he looked over at the frowning alpha. "There's no evidence that Paul's imprint is connected to this. And I talked to Charlie, and he said they aren't taking any of it too seriously." He frowned at Jacob. "So just drop it."

"Sure," Jacob grumbled before laying back down and pulling himself under the truck. Sam looked over at Jared and Paul.

"I just remembered I've got something to do," Paul said, pushing up from the chair and walking out of the garage without another word, not caring to spend any more time there.

He was still angry. Seriously, how could Jacob think Roisin had anything to do with this? It didn't seem like her. But then again, there was still a lot Paul didn't know about her. He suddenly stopped, his eyes widening slightly.

Could she be involved? No, he was pretty sure she wasn't. She hadn't admitted any involvement and seemed pretty exasperated about them in her texts.

He then shook his head and continued walking towards his house. It didn't matter if she was or wasn't. Really, a few harmless pranks? Jacob was taking the alpha thing too far. They were here to protect the area from vampires - not high school pranksters.

****

Roisin couldn't help the smile that came over her as she looked down at her cell phone during lunch and chuckled, then quickly responded to Paul's text. Even though she had promised Sean that she would wait a few days to see him again, she hadn't promised anything about not talking to him.

And really, Sean was being overcautious. She hadn't had any more weird side effects after their visit to the outdoors store other than wanting to talk to Paul non-stop, which she didn't think was weird at all. The only odd thing was that she was finding it slightly difficult to dodge certain comments or questions that came close to truths that she couldn't reveal to him. Roisin had 100 years of evading questions, telling partial truths and working her way around things. It was pretty much second nature at this point. Which is why it made no sense that she should feel so drawn to Paul and want to tell him everything.

She also didn't mention this to Sean, knowing he'd see it as some sort of sign of something.

"You've been grinning all week. Is it the guy again?" Tara asked, leaning towards her. Roisin looked up and blushed slightly, realizing the entire table was waiting on a response.

"Yes, and his name is Paul," she replied, putting her phone down and trying not to look at it. "We're going out this weekend. He's taking me hiking."

"That's so romantic," Megan crooned as Trey rolled his eyes.

"You think everything is romantic," he replied as he swung his arm on the back of her chair, earning him a half-hearted swat to the arm from Megan. Roisin had picked up fairly quickly that the two were smitten with each other, though for whatever reason refused to admit it.

"Ugh, boring," Carly replied, rolling her eyes.

"Oh, please. I'm sure it's just an excuse to take her to some makeout spot," Mae chimed in, her eyes lighting up.

Roisin just laughed nervously as she started to reach for her phone but stopped. It hadn't buzzed yet and she just checked it after all.

"Well, he helped me pick out some hiking boots this past weekend and then offered to show me some of the good spots since I haven't been hiking around here," she said nonchalantly.

"Please, I saw you two at the party," Rosemary said, grinning wickedly. "You guys were pretty hot and heavy. And managed to get him into your bedroom pretty quickly."

Roisin gulped slightly, not realizing anyone had noticed their sudden disappearance from the party on Friday night, though she could see Mae practically cackling in glee from next to her. The fae was seriously enjoying all the drama way too much. Though Roisin supposed it was better than playing tricks and pranks. Though only mildly so.

"We didn't get up to much," Roisin said calmly. They had been interrupted, though even if they hadn't been, she would have talked her way around the truth. She definitely didn't want her personal life on display for Carly and Rosemary. "We talked…"

She could see Rosemary and Carly's grins growing, though Josh was too busy staring at Mae. Her best friend was now checking her nails, though Roisin could clearly tell she was hanging on every word.

"I see. Just what did you talk about?" Carly asked.

"It's not any of your business," Tara retorted, frowning at the two gossipmongers and coming to Roisin's rescue. Of course, then Mae sat up in her chair slightly, narrowing her eyes at the other girl across the table for interrupting.

Roisin kicked her under the table, causing Mae to turn her glare to her. Roisin gave her a short shake of the head, silently warning her from doing anything to Tara. It was bad enough she was already Mae's favorite victim and Roisin had to intervene during homeroom twice that morning. Mae huffed and sat back in her chair, crossing her arms over her chest as she rolled her eyes.

"I seriously don't understand why you want to date one of those La Push guys. It's not like they ever do anything with their lives," Carly said then with a sigh. "I haven't heard of any of them getting off the reservation."

Roisin frowned, immediately getting defensive. What the hell did Carly know about Paul or any of the guys from La Push? Okay, so maybe Roisin didn't really know Embry or Quil _all_ that well, but they had seemed like nice guys. And she _was_ getting to know Paul. And he was definitely intelligent. And kind. And handsome. And caring. And really sweet.

" _Slow down, killer,"_ she silently chided herself, wondering how she got down that mental rabbithole.

"Oh please, like I didn't see you making out with someone from La Push at the party," Megan said, scoffing. Carly narrowed her eyes slightly.

"So? About the only thing they're good-"

"Enough," Roisin said firmly, stopping the conversation. If Carly or Rosemary got her anymore worked up, she just might start a small fire. "Look, if you actually got to know anyone from La Push, you might find that they're good people. A hell of a lot better than you."

She glared at the two in such a way that had their eyes going wide as they cowered back in their chairs slightly. She then quickly looked away, seeing the two shaking their heads and glancing at each other as though they weren't sure what had just happened. Okay, so maybe Roisin shouldn't have done that, but they were getting on her last nerve and they had insulted Paul.

"I need to go over my Physics homework before class," she said curtly as she stood and pulled her bag over her shoulder, then reached down to pick up her tray.

"Really, Ro. We're just having a bit of fun," Mae whined. Roisin sent her a withering glare before turning and striding off to dump her tray.

She really didn't understand why Mae was being so difficult. Okay, yes, maybe Roisin had been spending less time with her than usual. But Mae had seemed happy hanging out with Carly, Rosemary and Josh. Being more independent was good for her. And true, Mae was always a bit difficult. But she usually didn't get this problematic so quickly. Roisin also thought they were on good terms after she had devoted the rest of the weekend solely to Mae.

Looked like they were going to need another heart-to-heart.

Sighing, Roisin stopped at her locker and opened it, pulling out her Physics book and then shutting it. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw something move and immediately, she was on guard. Turning her head, she saw a flutter of light blue fabric as something disappeared around a corner.

For a moment, Roisin froze in fear. It couldn't be. Surely not. Royal fae rarely if ever left the Fae world. And even then, they had done everything they could to stay hidden from them. But then again, she had been gone 100 years. She should have expected at some point they would send someone after her if they haven't already done so.

Quickly recovering, Roisin made her way over and looked around another corner just in time to see the figure disappear again. Glancing around, she made sure no one was around before rendering herself invisible and then taking off. She'd rather not do this in the school, but she needed to either incapacitate or kill whoever it was before word got back to the courts.

About a half-second later, she had the fae pinned up against a locker by the neck, its legs kicking wildly in the air. Roisin couldn't help as relief filled her. It wasn't a court fae. Just another random solitary who happened to like running around in blue scarves.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, her eyes narrowing.

"Apologies, didn't know anyone had claimed this place. It's full and ripe with fresh meat," the fae replied, grinning and showing off razor-sharp teeth. Roisin squeezed harder, causing the fae to gasp and struggle to breath.

"No one claims this place, but I protect it," she said, flames dancing in her eyes as the temperature spiked. "I hear you've harmed anyone here, or in Forks or La Push in general, you will answer to me. Got it?"

The fae tried speaking, but only managed a few gurgles before finally nodding quickly. Roisin finally relaxed her grip and let go as the fae fell to the ground and then shot back up to its feet.

"Spread the word. This place is protected," Roisin warned. The fae nodded again and then shot off.

Just as it disappeared, the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch. Roisin quickly made herself visible and started down the hallway at a normal, human pace before it filled with students, moving in the direction of the physics classroom. She looked around, searching faces and people, trying to find any sign that the solitary had done anything.

Thankfully, she didn't see anything, but she couldn't help as her heart began pounding. A solitary fae had been in the school. Why? Why was it even in Forks to begin with? The others had only come because Mae had invited them and then they all left. Was word spreading that there was a group of fae settled here?

While she knew none of the solitary fae would willingly help a court fae even if one should come over in search of her, she couldn't help but feel a bit tense. Regardless of whether anyone knew who she truly was, just having a large group of fae in one spot would draw attention. But that wasn't something to think about right now. She needed to get to class.

Sighing, she picked up her pace, not wanting to be late to class. She'd have to discuss this with Sean later.


	10. Walking on Sunshine

Paul leaned against his truck in the parking lot at the trailhead, trying to appear calm and collected but couldn't help the incessant tapping of his foot as he waited for Roisin. He knew he was early, but his dad had pretty much shoved him out the door earlier than he needed to leave, tired of his near-constant motion in the small house.

Paul checked his phone again, but there were no new messages. He had sent her directions this morning and then suggested she wear something comfortable and layers. It was still a bit warm, but depending on how long they were out, it could get chilly. And there was always the chance it could rain so she'd need a waterproof jacket.

Holy shit, he sounded like a mother hen. But Roisin was from LA, he reasoned with himself, so she probably didn't know all of this. And he wanted to make sure that as long as she was with him, she was safe, even if that meant protecting her from a cold.

He checked the time for the third time in five minutes and then glanced up at the road.

Nervous energy continued to pulse through his body, making it even harder to stay still. He pushed off the truck and bent down to go through his pack yet again. He had enough water and food - though it was more than the average person. And had tossed in a waterproof jacket though honestly, he really didn't need anything more than the t-shirt, comfortable shorts and his own worn hiking boots he had on. Thankfully the weather was still nice enough that he could get away with it without having to explain that he ran hotter. There were also a few emergency items, though he doubted they'd need them. He had been hiking this trail since he was a kid and knew it like the back of his hand, but with his dad working in the parks service and always harping on him about trail safety, it was habit.

He then stood, his ears perking up as he heard the sound of a car approaching down the road. Pulling the hiking pack on his shoulder Paul turned, waiting until a silver Jeep Wrangler came up and pulled into the parking lot, coming to a stop next to him. His breath hitched as he saw Roisin in the driver's seat. She smiled as she reached over for a bag in the passenger seat and then got out of the car, walking around to him.

"Hey," she said, sounding slightly breathless.

"Hey," he replied, feeling his heart begin to pound.

Paul was fairly sure that he was wearing a goofy grin and was glad that Jared and the others weren't around to see this. They would never let him live this down.

Big, intimidating Paul Lahote, smiling like a clown because of the spritely woman now standing in front of him, nervously gripping the straps of her backpack. Her red hair was pulled up in a bun, though wispy strands fell around her face. And even though she was decked out in sturdy hiking gear with a windbreaker, he thought she had never looked more beautiful. Just being near her had him feeling happier than he had all week and much calmer.

"So, this is it?" she asked, looking around at the edge of the forest, though she appeared to be fighting the urge to grin as well, shifting around on her feet.

"Yea, it's a good trail for beginners," Paul said. Roisin looked back at him. "Thought it might be good to start with and then I can show you some of the other more advanced ones once you're used to it."

Roisin nodded and smiled, seeming happy with the implication that this wouldn't be the only time they went hiking together.

"Sounds good," she said. "Shall we?"

Paul nodded and started to the trailhead, Roisin falling in step next to him.

"How's school?" Paul asked, figuring that was a safe enough topic to start with. They had already talked about it a lot by this point. Roisin shrugged.

"It's good," she said, though she seemed to tense slightly. "The usual and all."

Immediately Paul started to worry, wondering what could be wrong. She seemed to happily talk about school whenever it came up before. Had something happened? Was someone giving her a hard time? He had to find out so he could go kick the shit out of them.

Okay, first, he needed to calm down.

"Everything okay?" he asked, his voice even. Roisin glanced at him and smiled.

"Oh yea, just homework and stuff. High school drama," she replied airly with a short laugh. "Mae lives for drama, so I'm used to it."

"I do not miss that part of high school," he replied with a chuckle, looking back to the trail. "Though, I mean, I still live in La Push, hang out with everyone, so I guess I still get plenty of it."

"Right… with Jared, Jacob, Embry and Quil," she said, glancing over at him. "Must be nice, growing up all together like that."

"It's annoying most of the time. But, ultimately, they're good guys," he said. "Could be worse."

"So, you've been friends with all of them since you were kids?" she asked.

Paul didn't answer at first, finding the question was hitting a bit closer to a part of his history he didn't want to share yet. Damnit. That was definitely not a first date conversation.

"We've all known each other and grown up around each other, yea. And when we were little, we would play together and all. But I didn't really hang out with any of them in junior high until my junior year of high school. That's when Jared and I became best friends," he said, hoping his tone sounded casual and being careful to not make it obvious he was skirting around the truth. Roisin nodded slowly. "What about you? The way you talk about Mae, seems like you guys have been around each other just as long."

"We've been best friends since we were little and she's always been a big part of my life," Roisin said. She then frowned slightly. "Though… things are different… I mean, we were always close and always did everything together… but lately, I feel like we somehow got on different paths… But I don't think she realizes it..."

Paul's eyes widened slightly, though from the way she had talked about Mae over the last week, he had been getting that impression.

"It happens. People change as they get older. Sometimes what you thought was important… doesn't seem all that important anymore. And other things are," he said. He couldn't help but think of himself with that statement. And that he was royally screwing this up - Paul was no philosopher. But he had made it this far in the conversation, so best to keep going. Roisin looked over at him with a thoughtful look on her face. "You just… grow apart."

He then thought of the old group he used to hang out with. He was certainly glad he had grown apart from them.

"Yea… that makes sense," she said, smiling slightly. For a moment they got lost in each others' eyes as they walked, but then she looked away, her cheeks turning a bit pink. "So… what got you into hiking?"

"My dad," he said, glancing at her. "Like I said, he works in the parks service. Growing up, he was always taking me out with him. Teaching me how to hack it in the wilderness and all."

"Sounds nice," she said, though Paul heard the hint of sadness in her voice. He glanced at her.

"You spend a lot of time outside growing up?" he ventured to ask. He wanted to know more about what it was that made her sad so that he could make it better. Or at least try.

He wanted nothing more than to make her happy.

"All the time," she said, now smiling at him, her blue eyes dancing, the sadness now seemingly gone. "It's always warm where I grew up, so I was outside more than I was in." She chuckled. "Being in nature… it makes me feel whole."

Paul noticed that her cheeks began to fill with color, almost as though she hadn't meant to say that. She laughed nervously.

"I get it," he said, hoping to make her feel at ease. "I mean, it feels different out here. Better."

Paul grimaced slightly, wishing that could have sounded better but he had never been a man of many words. Or particularly good with them.

He looked around the forest, taking in all the smells and sounds. He had stopped spending so much time out here when he started high school. But since becoming a wolf, his appreciation for it had come back in full force. More than that, he felt like he had a deeper connection with nature.

"It's like there's a connection," he continued, pushing through the embarrassment. He then ventured a look at Roisin and found her smiling softly at him.

"Yea, I feel that way too," she replied and he felt his heart begin to soar. Maybe he wasn't a complete idiot. He swallowed and looked away.

"So, why Forks?" he then asked.

"Oh, well, honestly? We were looking to move and I opened a map of the U.S., closed my eyes and pointed," she said with a laugh. "Landed on Forks."

"Seriously?" Paul asked. She nodded. "Your uncle didn't decide?"

"Sean, ah, let me pick," she said, seeming a bit flustered. "He can pretty much work from anywhere, which helps since we move around so much."

"Must be nice," Paul admitted, though now he was curious over just what it was Sean did for work, though thought it better not to pry that deep just yet.

"Yea, it's nice being able to have him around a lot," she said.

They descended back into silence a bit longer, Paul racking his brain for something to ask her. He really wanted to ask why they moved around a lot. The only people he knew that moved as much were the Cullens, but it was obvious why. And she definitely wasn't a vampire - he had felt the warmth of her skin, felt her heartbeat. Why would normal people need to move so much? Were they running from something?

A spike of protectiveness hit him. Whatever it was, he would make sure that she was safe.

"So, it's just you and your dad?" she then asked, breaking the silence as she looked over at him and beat him to speaking. "You never talk about your mom."

"Yea, since I was 12," he replied. "My mom died of cancer."

Paul nearly stopped walking, surprised at his candor. He hadn't really intended for things to get too deep on the first date. Even if this was his imprint and he found it hard not to share everything with him. But then he looked over and saw a look of sympathy on her face. She reached over and took his hand, squeezing it. He felt a comforting warmth spread throughout him.

"I'm so sorry," she said. "That must have been rough."

"Yea, but we managed," he said, somehow fighting off the urge to go deeper than that. Again, not ready for that. "How long has it been just you, Mae and Sean?"

Roisin let go of his hand and started walking again, turning her face away from him. Paul followed her.

"It's been awhile," she said with a sigh. "But we've managed. Sean has really gone out of his way to take us in. Taught us a lot."

For a moment, it was as though he could feel her pain even though he didn't know what had happened. He wanted to reach out and pull her into his arms, but stopped himself, instead maintaining his pace - keeping some space between them. This was the most personal she had gotten with him.

"What happened, if you don't mind talking about it," he asked. Roisin glanced at him, giving him a sad smile.

"Trust me, it's a long story. All that matters is I'm happy now," she said.

The answer was vague and only caused more questions, but Paul knew better than to push it. They would have the rest of their lives to get to know each other. Maybe someday she would feel comfortable enough to tell him. Paul was slightly surprised at himself. Usually he just barged bluntly into things, but it seemed finding Roisin - his imprint - was bringing out a gentler side of him. Sam would be happy.

But right now, he wanted to focus on making Roisin happy.

"Come on. There's something up here I want to show you," he said, motioning up the trail with a smile. Roisin returned it and nodded.

"Okay."

****

For a moment, Roisin thought she was back in the Fae world.

Paul led her off the main path of the trail, helping her over fallen tree trunks and such even though he didn't really need to, telling her that it wasn't far. Then they stepped out of the trees and before her was a small hidden spring with a waterfall that cascaded down into. It was enchanting.

"Oh my god," she said, her eyes going wide. She looked over at him, finding him smiling as well.

She turned back to it and stepped closer, bending down to look into the crystal clear water. Reaching out, she dipped her hand in the water finding it was cold and then looked up at the waterfall.

"In the summer, this place is full of people, but the water's too cold to swim now," he said, moving over and sitting on a rock near her, pulling his pack off and setting it on the ground next to him.

She noticed he was blushing slightly and not meeting her eyes, which made her think people came here for more than just swimming.

Oh, goddess. Was that why he had brought her here? If it was, to be honest, she didn't think she would mind all that much.

 _Nope. Today is about getting to know Paul more,_ she scolded herself.

Roisin then sat down, watching the water dance down the waterfall. Things had been a bit awkward as they walked down the trail and she could sense that there were things Paul wasn't telling her. But she wasn't about to push it, knowing she had her own secrets to hide. And while she was long used to hiding who and what she was, she found herself wanting to completely open up to him despite the fact that they had just met. Which was scary. She remembered Sean's warning.

She couldn't get attached. But it was already proving difficult.

"So, you bring all of your dates here?" she asked with a smile. Paul chuckled and looked down at the spring, his cheeks turning slightly red.

"Ah, no," he said. "Well… not for a long time. Haven't really dated anyone in… it's been awhile."

"I find that hard to believe," Roisin replied, finding it much easier to flirt and joke around. Flirting was light and airy. She wouldn't have to get too deep and honest with him. "I'm sure you take a different girl out every week."

He glanced at her and for a moment she could see a hint of pain in his eyes, but he covered it up with a sheepish grin.

"Like I said, not so much anymore," he said. "It's pretty much work and... school right now."

"Right… you said you were taking online classes. What's your major?" she asked. Better to keep the focus on him.

"Just general studies at the moment. Figured by the time I've saved up enough and gotten my grades high enough to transfer to a four-year university, I'll have figured something out by then," he said, though he seemed hesitant.

"I think that's a good idea," Roisin said quickly, not wanting him to feel any sort of shame in it. "I might do that too… I don't really know what I want to do in university yet, to be honest."

Paul chuckled.

"I have a hard time imagining you in community college," he said. "Don't you make straight As and take mostly AP classes? You could probably get into any school you want."

Roisin shrugged as she looked back at the waterfall. It was true. And she had attended classes at Stanford and UCLA, even UC Berkeley. But they had never stayed anywhere long enough for her to actually get a degree. Even then she always just took random classes, unable to decide what she wanted to get a degree in.

For the first time, Roisin actually found herself thinking it might be fun to do that. Maybe apply for the University of Washington if it meant she could stay near Paul.

She started at that thought, shaking her head slightly. Where had that thought come from?

"Have you thought about it, though? What you'd want to study in university?" Paul then asked, bringing her out of her reverie. "Senior year typically goes by pretty fast." She looked over at him.

"Sometimes. But I haven't decided anything yet," she said. Truthfully, it was ridiculous of her to think about getting a degree. It was her nature to change her mind frequently and at the drop of a hat. Chances are she'd change her degree every semester even if she did try. "What about you? Given any thought to what you might want to study?"

Paul looked away from her, his face the picture of contemplation. He finally shrugged and smiled sheepishly.

"Not much," he said. "Maybe computers? I'm pretty good at that stuff, but not sure if I want to make a career out of it. Having a career still seems like it's some sort of far off thing… I'm only 18."

He then smiled at her and Roisin felt her heartbeat flutter a bit. Goddess, she loved his smile.

"Yea… 18 is still really young," she agreed. "Lots of time."

For a moment they stared into each other's eyes and she felt a distinct pull, wanting to get closer to him. To wrap her arms around him and feel his warm body against hers. Flashes of the night they met went through her head and it was hard to regain her focus.

He must have been feeling something too, because he moved slightly closer, reaching out and touching her cheek gently, then tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. Roisin couldn't look away as her heart raced and she prayed to all the goddesses that he would kiss her. But at the same time, she worried if they started kissing that she wouldn't be able to stop.

As he continued to stare at her, hesitating, Roisin caught the look in his eyes and decided to hell with it. They were in a secluded part of the forest. What were the changes anyone would come across them?

She closed the distance between them, pressing her lips against his. It took half a second for him to respond, reaching out and pulling her closer until he was almost cradling her in his arms, and hers going around his neck. This kiss was softer, gentler than that night. But it still sent sparks throughout her body.

Paul's hand came back to her cheek and she swore she felt heat radiating from it. In fact, his entire body felt like it was on fire. And it was spreading to hers.

Roisin deepened the kiss, pulling him closer and feeling the fire start to grow. His hand drifted down her side, slowly descending until it landed on her ass. Just as it touched, a sudden vibration went through her body. Roisin jumped, her lips leaving his as her eyes widened.

It was then that she realized it was her phone going off.

"Sorry," she said, pulling away and fishing her phone out of her back pocket as Paul chuckled softly, scratching the back of his neck.

Opening up, she saw a series of texts from Sean, telling her that there was an issue back at home and she needed to get back now. Groaning, she replied and then snapped it shut.

"I really hate to end this here, but that was Sean. Something is going on at home and I need to get back," she said.

"Yea, sure. No problem," Paul said quickly, though she saw the disappointment clear in his eyes.

Oh goddess, she hoped he didn't think this was her trying to get out of the rest of the date. She really, really wanted to continue the date. He looked up at the sky.

"It's probably going to start raining soon, anyway," he said, looking back down at her before getting up. He then held his hand out to her.

Roisin quickly accepted it and soon enough they had their packs back on and were headed back to the trailhead, neither talking much. Roisin couldn't help it as she silently fumed over whatever sort of emergency was going on.

When they got back to their cars, she turned to him, wanting to do whatever she could to show him that she wasn't leaving because she wanted to. So she pulled him to her, kissing him as passionately as she dared go for now. Otherwise she'd end up pulling him into the back of her Jeep.

"So… maybe we could do this again next weekend?" she asked, slightly breathless afterwards. Paul started grinning and nodded, seemingly unable to speak for the moment. "Good."

She then kissed again briefly and hurriedly got into her car before she was tempted to do anything else. With a wave, she started it and pulled out. When she glanced out the window, she saw him still standing there, watching her. A smile played across her lips as she returned her focus to the road.

Okay, maybe she couldn't wait until next weekend to see him again.

****

Roisin's mouth dropped open as she pulled up to the house, seeing small groups of fae gathered around, some playing music, others dancing. And some others just talking.

"What in the holy hell," she murmured, quickly turning the car off and hopping out, nearly forgetting her pack in the process. She slammed the door shut and nearly ran to the front door.

There were more fae inside the house.

For the love of all the goddesses, what did Mae think she was doing? Maybe Roisin should have told her the full truth. Then she wouldn't do stupid shit like this. Inviting every fucking fae in the mortal world to their house. Okay, so that was a bit of an over-exaggeration, but there were still a lot more fae there than Roisin liked.

"What the hell is going on?" she shouted as she stepped out onto the verandah, finding Mae sitting with a group of fae around the pool, a wine glass full of shimmery gold liquid in her hand.

When she saw Roisin, she immediately stood and skipped over to her.

"Finally! So how was the date? You guys get down and dirty in the woods?" she asked with a wink.

"What is this?!" Roisin shouted, motioning to the fae around them and ignoring her question.

"Well, you said no more parties. But you said nothing about fae gatherings," Mae said with a shrug. "I thought it would be a fun way to welcome you home from your date."

Roisin groaned and nearly smacked herself in the forehead.

"Mae… you know we can't just go and invite a ton of fae around," she said, attempting to keep calm. Really all she wanted to do was throttle her. Or have a panic attack. She hadn't figured out which just yet.

"That's what I told her," Sean said, appearing at Roisin's side, glaring at Mae.

"Oh, come on! You are taking this whole guardian thing way too seriously. You're not actually our guardian, you know. And you," she said, turning to look at Roisin. "There was a time when you loved this! What the hell has happened to _you_?"

Roisin closed her eyes and took a deep breath, struggling slightly to keep her temper in check. Once she thought she had herself under control, she opened her eyes and looked at Mae.

"Mae. We are trying to keep a low profile," she said, glancing around. "A few fae are fine, but this many? We can't control what they do."

"Oh please, it's not like they're going into town to wreak havoc. They're just hanging out here. We _are_ pretty far away from civilization," she huffed.

Roisin stared at her a moment and then looked around. She knew she could make them all leave in a heartbeat. For that matter, Sean could as well, though Roisin knew why he had deferred to her, not wanting Mae or the others to truly know who he was. But at the same time, maybe if she let the party go on for a bit, it might be enough for Mae to stop acting out for at least a little while.

Now that she looked at it, there weren't _that_ many here. And they were all solitary. They wouldn't share their location with the court fae.

"Okay. Fine. But they are all gone by tomorrow morning," she said, watching as Mae's face lit up with glee. "And no one goes into town or anywhere near mortals."

"Got it," Mae said. She then stuck her tongue out at Sean before spinning on her toes and sauntering over to the group she had just left.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Sean asked. There was no accusation or caution in his voice, but Roisin could tell he was worried.

"I didn't think I had a choice," Roisin said with a sigh as she turned to him. "If it's not this, she might try something else."

Sean studied her a moment before his dark eyes flinted around the yard.

"Okay, I could see that," he relented. "But you're going to have to put your foot down, Ro. She's not going to stop and we both know that." He paused a moment. "I think you should tell her."

Roisin was silent. Even though she knew that she should, she didn't want to. Mae was always full of light. If she told her her one remaining secret, she might tarnish that. And she didn't want to do that. Not to mention, it had taken a moment of true vulnerability to tell Sean. She didn't want Mae to know how weak she truly was.

Roisin sighed again as she looked over at Mae, who was laughing loudly.

"I don't think I can…," she said. She then turned and started back into the house. "I'm going to change and then I'll be back to help keep an eye on things."

She could sense that Sean wanted to talk to her more, but would wait for her to come around.

"Got it."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I have gotten a TON of writing done on this story the last couple of days. Kind of surprised myself, to be honest. But happy to be able to post more! And apologies. I mean, I'm already off canon with this one, but legit forgot that Paul's parents were divorced – enough folks in the Twilight universe have dead parents, so I think it's an understandable mistake. But yea, it's done. I killed his mom in this story, sorry about that. It was an honest brain fart on my part.
> 
> But yea, I've figured out a lot of the backstory along with all the writing and editing. So I'm excited to get a lot of these chapters posted.
> 
> Thanks for reading and following!


	11. Ain't No Sunshine When She's Gone

Paul sighed and looked at his phone yet again and then tossed it onto the coffee table harder than he intended. He winced as it clattered across the wood surface, but knew he hadn't done serious damage to it. But it was better to throw his phone than to punch something. And at the moment he was starting to feel like he needed to punch something just to expel some of his pent-up anxiety.

He could handle being away from Roisin because they were talking to each other, but this? Being separated and not talking, it was starting to get to him.

"Seriously, dude. Chill out," Jared said, casting a strong side-eye at him before returning his attention to the video game. "She'll call."

"We don't know that," Paul said, pushing up from the couch and started to pace around the small living room, occasionally running his fingers through his hair, or looking towards the front door as though he might run out of it any second.

He thought the date had gone well. He felt like he knew Roisin a bit better. And it had certainly ended on a good note. A really good note, actually.

But then she had sped off, and he hadn't heard from her since. Not even a text to say she had fun. It wasn't so much he was worried that she didn't want to see him again - he was pretty sure that she was feeling the imprint - but he was worried about the emergency. It had to have been serious for her to run off so quickly. And well, just because they had imprinted didn't necessarily mean they would end up together.

"She could still reject the imprint," Paul said, still staring at the door.

"Holy shit, would you stop? It's been less than 24 hours since your date. Doesn't mean that she's rejecting anything," Jared said, rolling his eyes. "And you thought I was bad with Kim…"

Paul stopped pacing and glared at him. He then looked away and took a deep breath, trying to calm down. Right. Jared was right. He knew that he was being slightly irrational. This was all the imprint. It had to be. God, why was he flipping out so hard over this? He didn't remember any of the other guys being this bad. Granted, they had imprinted on people they already knew, who were in the tribe and had at least some cursory knowledge of the tribal legends.

Well, except Nessie. But that was a completely different mess that didn't relate to his situation either.

"So, the date went well, though. Right?" Jared said. Paul looked over at him, knowing he was trying to keep him focused on the positives.

"Yea, it did," he replied, moving to sit down again. Though he started shaking his leg.

"You take her to the waterfall?" Jared asked, his eyes still fixed on the game.

"Yea…" he said. Jared cracked a smile as he glanced at him. "Not because of that."

"Oh, you sure about that?" Jared asked, now chuckling. "I did see that dream, you know."

"I didn't intend… that wasn't the point of going there," Paul said, his cheeks turning slightly red as he stood up and began pacing again. He couldn't sit still. "I just wanted to talk…"

"Sure," Jared replied.

"I'm serious! There's still a lot I don't know about her," Paul shouted, stopping for a moment. He then took a deep breath, struggling to rein himself in. Right. Calm.

"Well, did you learn anything?" Jared asked.

"She likes being outdoors," Paul said, thinking back to the date. "Seems like some things aren't so hot with her and her best friend - Mae. And something happened with her parents, but she didn't want to talk about it. Seems like it was big."

"Wow, so much," Jared said dryly.

"She doesn't plan to go to college right away. Doesn't know what to study," Paul continued, ignoring the look Jared was giving him.

Okay, so perhaps he could have pushed to learn more about her before they started making out. But he didn't think they made out for _that_ long. However, looking back, he realized that Roisin was still just as much a mystery to him as she was before the date. And now that he really thought about it, she had a knack for turning the conversation back to him.

She had learned a lot more about him yesterday than he had about her.

It was a bit disconcerting to feel so attached to someone that he barely knew anything about. But yet, Paul knew he would walk through fire for Roisin.

At that moment, his phone started buzzing and immediately, he strode across the room to pick it up, his heart leaping for joy when he saw Roisin's name.

"Hey," he said, trying to sound like he wasn't incredibly excited to hear her voice. Jared started laughing. After rolling his eyes, Paul flipped him off as he started towards his bedroom.

"Hey," Roisin replied. "Sorry I've been MIA. We had some out-of-town guests pop by unexpectedly and I was pretty busy taking care of them."

"Oh?" Paul said as he sat down on his bed. "Family?"

"Of sorts," Roisin said. "Anyway, I wanted to tell you that I had a lot of fun yesterday and again, I'm really sorry I had to run off like that."

"Hey, it's fine. I get it. Family emergencies and all. They happen," he replied, surprised at how casual he sounded.

"Well, hopefully our next date won't get interrupted," Roisin said, the smile clear in her voice. Paul's heart stuttered a bit.

Thank god. She wanted to see him again.

"Yea, hopefully it won't," he said. "When are you free?"

"Maybe Wednesday night? We could meet up at this diner in Forks that I've fallen in love with," she said. "Is that okay with you?"

"Yea, perfect," Paul said, though he winced. Perfect? Ugh.

"Good. Okay. Meet you there around 7 pm?" Roisin said, getting straight to the point.

"Okay," he agreed.

"Great. I gotta go, but I'll talk to you later," she said.

"Okay, bye."

Paul stared at the phone a few moments, sure he was grinning like a fool. He then got himself composed and stood, going back into the living room.

"And?" Jared asked.

"Turns out some folks from out of town stopped by unexpectedly yesterday and she was busy looking out for them. But we're going out again on Wednesday," he said, sitting next to Jared on the couch.

"Told you," Jared replied, grinning. "You had nothing to worry about." Paul smiled as he nodded.

"Yea, I guess not…"

****

Roisin felt like she was floating through her week. Yes, her date had gotten interrupted on Saturday, but she was determined that nothing would stop her from enjoying their second date on Wednesday. She had made Mae promise not to invite over any more fae without running it by her or Sean first and hoped that she would actually listen this time.

So far, Mae had been behaving (mostly… okay, so it was behaving by Mae standards), spending most of her time with Carly, Rosemary and Josh at school. At home, Roisin did her best to focus on hanging out with Mae when she wasn't doing homework or other chores. After admitting to Paul that she felt she and Mae were growing apart, the feeling only grew and Roisin assumed Mae must notice it too if she was acting out like this.

Despite everything, Mae was her best friend. And she had followed her when Roisin ran away from the Summer Court - no questions asked. Even if Roisin was annoyed with Mae's rather sudden difficult behavior of late, she didn't want to lose her friend.

"So did you hear about the post office?"

"Yea, someone spray painted it. What did it say?"

"Some weird sign. I don't know. I think it was the third or fourth place to get hit this week. And it's only Wednesday."

Roisin paused in front of her locker, listening in to the conversation as long as she could before the two students walked away. Sighing, she grabbed her history book and shut the locker door.

Apparently Mae was _still_ getting up to trouble, despite telling Roisin that she would back off. Graffiti had been popping up all over town and for the most part, it seemed harmless. But if Mae had anything to do with it, it was likely just a precursor. The fae did love to build up the drama. Roisin, for one, didn't want to find out just what she had planned next, but she had class and wouldn't see Mae until lunch.

Sitting down at her desk, she opened her notebook and started going over her notes from class yesterday.

"Right, so I thought you said no more parties," Tara said as she sat down at the desk next to her. Roisin sat up and turned, her brow furrowed.

Yea, this had Mae written all over it.

"I did," she replied. Tara chuckled.

"Well, word is that there's another one this weekend at your place," she said, opening her book. Roisin groaned and rolled her eyes.

"Mae," she said.

"I mean, I have to give her props for dedication," Tara replied, chuckling.

"Do not encourage her," Roisin said. "I'm going to have to put a stop to it."

"Just what happened last time? I thought everything was going okay and then suddenly you guys are telling everyone to go home. You never said why," Tara asked.

"A kid from La Push got sick. Decided it was best to end things for the night before anything else happened," Roisin replied, seeing the teacher walk in. "And to make sure that nothing else like that happened again."

"Probably for the best," Tara said with a sigh.

"Mmhmm," Roisin agreed, going quiet as the teacher began speaking.

Class seemed to inch by slowly as she very nearly counted down the seconds to the bell, anxious to get to Mae before news about the party spread even more. While she knew there was still plenty of time to cancel it and get the word out, Roisin didn't want to change anything.

This was Mae. If left to her own devices for too long, there was no telling what mischief she'd get into. And while she would never intentionally hurt anyone, that didn't necessarily mean that someone wouldn't end up hurt by accident.

Mercifully, the bell finally rang and Roisin shot out of her chair, not even bothering to wait for Tara as she made her way to the cafeteria. Mae was already seated with her clique, the four of them laughing about something.

"Mae, a word," Roisin said, not even bothering to hide her annoyance. Carly and Rosemary shot her glares, though Mae just smiled as she stood and followed Roisin back out to the hallway. "I said no more parties."

Mae's eyes widened slightly, though her smirk didn't disappear.

"And I didn't plan it. I can't help it if others want one," she said lightly.

"Mae, we both know that you're behind it, even if the words didn't come from your mouth," Roisin said. "You're going to cancel it."

"But why?" Mae asked, pouting. "Just because _one_ person gets sick-"

"With fae wine that _you_ were drinking," Roisin butt in.

"Yea, and then you and Sean got rid of all of it after everyone left this weekend," Mae grumbled.

"There are mortals over at the house all the time, Mae. Ones that _you_ invite. It's too dangerous to have it lying around," Roisin said.

"I wouldn't intentionally give it to them," Mae scoffed.

"Yea, but you _would_ leave it out for them to 'accidentally come across it' just because you got bored," Roisin returned. "I'm serious. We're not supposed to be getting attention from the fae world and you are not helping. Do you or do you not remember that we fucking ran away and my brother and parents are looking for me? No party."

Mae rolled her eyes and huffed.

"I'll tell them it's cancelled," she said, sounding incredibly unhappy with this.

"And please, lay off on the pranks around town? It's starting to get to be too much," Roisin said. Mae frowned.

"Wait… You aren't doing it?" she asked. Roisin's eyes widened.

"Me? Why would I do it?" she asked, finding the notion a bit ridiculous.

Okay, sure she could get into a bit of mischief here and there, but not lately. Her thoughts had been focused mostly on whatever was going on with Paul and keeping Mae in check.

"Well, I'm not doing it," Mae replied. "And if it's not you, and we both know it's not Sean - he's got no sense of humor - then… who is it?"

Roisin thought for a moment. They did have a large number of fae over this weekend. There was always a chance one or two had stuck around. But then why wouldn't they be at the house? Fae preferred to congregate together in groups more often than not, even solitaries.

"Hmm, maybe it's some students," Roisin said. Mae just shrugged.

"Whatever. It's not even creative," she said, rolling her eyes. "So, we done here?"

"Yea," Roisin said.

"Good," Mae replied as she spun on her toes and sauntered back into the cafeteria.

Roisin followed her, though a bit more slowly, her thoughts going to the graffiti popping up. It very well could be a mortal thing, she rationalized. But at the same time, if it was solitary, she probably should find out who and give them a warning. A few harmless pranks here and there were fine, but she worried without someone watching, they'd take something too far. And well, she really did not need any fae getting the attention of any of the courts. They had been lucky so far that Darraugh hadn't found them.

But like Mae said, whatever. Roisin could worry about it later. With her chat with Mae out of the way, now she could focus on her date with Paul tonight. A smile spread across her face.

This was a far more enjoyable thing to think about.

****

"Hey," Roisin said as she trotted up to Paul, who was leaning against his truck just outside the diner. As soon as he saw her, he pushed off, his face lighting up instantly.

She was pretty sure she was grinning as well, though for the life of her, she still wasn't sure just what was happening. Part of her knew that she should be worried. She had this unexplainable pull towards a mortal that she couldn't shake. And being around him even just talking to him on the phone - she felt happier and content. While she hadn't had any more episodes like the one the day after the party, it made no sense that she would want to spend all her time around a mortal guy she barely knew.

But here she was, about to go on another date with him. And trying not to think too much on the hows and whys of the situation.

"How was your day?" he asked, glancing down at her as they walked in, his hands in his pockets.

"Eh, the usual. Had to put out another Mae-induced trash fire," she replied flippantly as they sat at a table and a server brought over menus. Paul chuckled.

"What did she do this time?" he asked.

"Tried to throw another party behind my back after I told her no more," Roisin replied. "She'll never learn…"

"But at least you stopped it, right?" he asked, though from the tone of his voice, it almost sounded like he wanted there to be another party.

Right, they had gotten pretty hot and heavy at the last one.

"Yep! She said that she would cancel it," Roisin said, burying her face in the menu so he couldn't see her blush as the memories assaulted her mind. She really did not need to get lost in reminiscing right now, though thankfully the moment was quickly passing. "So, what's good here?"

"Well, if you're not vegetarian, I recommend the burgers. Swiss mushroom is really good," Paul said.

Roisin glanced up at him, finding that he was watching her, but rather than look away, he held her gaze, which caused a flurry of butterflies in her stomach. By the goddesses, he had the most gorgeous eyes she had ever seen.

"Can I take your order?"

Roisin jumped slightly, not realizing the server had returned. Though the young woman hadn't acknowledged her presence, clearly making eyes at Paul. She was even standing on his side of the table. For a moment, anger began pulsing through Roisin - she was on a flippin' date with him and this woman had the gall to openly gape at him?

Not on her watch.

"Yea, I'll have the double bacon cheeseburger set with a Dr. Pepper. Oh, and an extra side of onion rings and tator tots," Paul said, getting Roisin's attention. His eyes were still fixed on her as a playful smile filled his face. He held the menu to the server. "What are you having, babe?"

Roisin blushed slightly at the pet name, though knew why he said it. He had seen her frown at the server and was clearly entertained by her obvious jealousy. And well, Roisin couldn't help but feel a bit embarrassed she had been caught.

What was wrong with her? She had been about to snap at a perfect stranger.

"I'll have the mushroom swiss burger set - extra pickles and tomato. Um, sweet tea, if you have it," she said, looking at the server.

"We only have unsweetened," she replied dryly, her smile gone.

"Dr. Pepper is fine, then," Roisin said, trying to remain polite as she handed the menu over.

She then felt a sudden warmth and looked over, seeing that Paul had slid his hand across the table, now holding hers as he continued smiling at her. The server walked off, leaving them alone again.

"You know… it's pretty hot when you get jealous," he said.

"What makes you think I was jealous?" Roisin asked, though she couldn't help but smile. And she knew that she was caught. She never could hide her emotions all that well.

She was Summer fae - they wore their hearts on their sleeves and took every emotion to the nth degree.

"The way you were clearly glaring daggers at the server," he said with a chuckle. "I mean, if looks could kill…"

"I didn't realize it was that bad," she said, finding she liked how he was now caressing her palm with his thumb. And thankfully that was the truth - she hadn't realized she was glaring at the poor woman so strongly until Paul got her attention.

"Definitely know not to get on your bad side. I remember how you reacted the night Embry got sick," Paul said.

"Well, that was justified," Roisin replied with a shrug. "I wouldn't get angry with you unless it was justified." Paul stared at her a moment and then chuckled.

"I'm curious as to just what your definition of justified is," he said. Roisin just gave him an amused look. "Let's see… if I… cancel a date at the last minute?"

"Not if you have a good reason. Like a family emergency. Homework disaster. Natural disaster. Injury. Death. That sort of thing," she replied lightly.

"Forget your birthday?"

"I forget it half the time."

"When is your birthday?" Paul asked suddenly. Roisin smiled slyly.

"Smooth one, Lahote. June 21. Yours?" she replied.

"January 5," he said. "What if I dissed your favorite band?"

"We would just learn to agree to disagree," she said.

"I see," Paul replied slowly, still smiling at her.

Roisin chuckled and glanced out the window, seeing a large truck drive by with an elaborate, loopy sign in vivid orange spray paint. She frowned, immediately thrown out of the conversation.

There was no way a mortal should know that sign. But Mae had said it wasn't her. Meaning whoever was behind the graffiti was most definitely fae. Shit.

"What's wro- oh. Yea, been hearing about that," he said. Riosin looked over at him. "Seems like it's been popping up all over town."

"Yea, everyone's talking about it at school," she said, trying to push her concern aside.

"The police can't seem to figure out who's doing it, from what I hear," Paul replied. "Even the places that have security cameras, they glitch out or something."

"Probably just someone… that's bored," Roisin said in return. She couldn't tell him the full truth - that she believed it was fae.

"Probably. It's a small town - people are always getting up to stupid shit," Paul said. "Though, it's probably nothing to you. Coming from LA and all." Roisin shrugged.

"I guess so. I mean, there's always something going on, but I wasn't all that fond of it. Mae loved it though," she said. "Sean and I, we prefer Forks."

"You guys are really close. You and Sean," Paul said. Roisin nodded.

"Like I said, he took us in a long time ago. When Mae and I didn't have anyone else," she said, frowning slightly.

"Must have been hard," Paul replied softly. Roisin looked up and noticed the gentle look in his eyes.

"Like I said, I'm good now. In a much better place," she said, hoping he wouldn't ask her anymore.

She really wasn't sure how to get into all of that without telling him what she was. And she really didn't want to tell him all the details about why she had left. Those secrets she kept to herself. Well, her and Sean. But that was a two-way street. He kept her secrets while she kept his.

****

Paul could tell she was keeping something from him. And while part of him wanted to demand that she tell him what happened and who was responsible, the rational side of his brain urged him to calm down. She wasn't going to tell him anything if he lost it in the middle of the diner.

But damn, his protective side was fighting back pretty strong.

Thankfully, their food came and he had something to focus on other than Roisin and whatever darkness was in her past. And wondering if she would ever feel comfortable enough to tell him.

"How's your dad?" she asked, looking over at him.

"Good," he said, a bit touched she would ask about him. "Work is work and all. Though he's been pushing to go on a fishing trip before the weather turns too cold. Told him with the way it's been, he's got at least another month to fit it in."

"Right, been hearing that it's been unnaturally warm this year," Roisin said, as she reached across the table and snatched one of his onion rings.

"Excuse you," Paul said lightly, though he wasn't all that angry by it as she smirked at him. In fact, he liked the idea of sharing with her for some reason.

Wow, the imprint really was changing him. The last time someone had attempted to steal food from his plate, they had ended up with a black eye. Granted, it was Seth and Paul would never punch a girl, but he definitely would have had his feathers ruffled.

"What? Not like you don't have enough over there. Where do you even put all that food?" she commented before taking a bite out of the ring.

"High metabolism," he replied, the excuse coming out automatically at this point. Roisin shrugged. "Anyway, yea, the weather is kind of weird, but not the weirdest thing to happen around here."

"What sort of weird stuff?" Roisin asked, her voice casual but her eyes clearly reading that she was far more interested in his answer than she was outwardly letting on.

Shit, right. She couldn't know the truth about all of that yet. That most of the weird stuff that had happened in and around Forks over the last couple of years were because of vampires.

"Not lately, no. But in the past… bunch of hikers went missing a couple years ago. It was a bear, I think. They found and killed it," he said quickly. Roisin appeared a bit letdown.

"Oh. Animal attacks," she said.

"What? Expecting alien invasions?" Paul asked, a bit entertained.

"No," she scoffed. "Just when you said weird, well… animal attacks don't seem _that_ weird. Not for a town in the forest."

"I guess not," Paul said with a sigh.

Riosin then jumped slightly and frowned, reaching into her pocket for her phone. Her frown deepened as she put the phone aside.

"Just Mae," she said.

Paul nodded and returned to his food, but her phone buzzed several more times. He sat up and raised his eyebrows as Roisin huffed and opened it, reading through the text messages.

"For the love of…" she muttered under breath as she sent a reply and then put the phone back down. "Really sorry about that."

"No worries," Paul replied, smiling.

The phone went off again. And again. Roisin didn't even look at it, as they continued to talk, but it was starting to get incredibly distracting. Finally she gave in, opening up the phone rather aggressively, glaring down at it.

Damn, Roisin was hot when she had an attitude.

Her cheeks then turned slightly pink as she narrowed her eyes, put in a response and then slid the phone back into her pocket.

"I'm sorry… it's… another family emergency," she said, her annoyance at the texts very clear, but at the same time, there was an undercurrent of worry.

"It's fine. Like I said, I get it," he replied, though he couldn't help but feel disappointed that yet another date was being cut short by her family. Crap, what if they really didn't like him? Was this their way of trying to keep him and Roisin apart? Surely not... "Let me get some to-go boxes and I'll walk you out."

"Thanks," Riosin said, an apologetic smile on her face.

He quickly got the boxes and while Roisin was busy boxing up hers, he paid the bill and then took care of his own. She seemed a bit surprised when he told her he had paid already, but thanked him. They then stood and walked outside.

"Again, I'm really-"

He cut her off by pressing a firm kiss to her lips. He had been dying to kiss her - or even just touch her - all night. Holding her hand earlier hadn't been enough. When he pulled back, her eyes were wide, but she was smiling.

"Stop apologizing. I told you it's okay," he said, returning the smile. Roisin nodded and turned to her car, but stopped, facing him again.

"Try again this weekend?" she asked hopefully.

"How about a movie in Port Angeles? Friday night?" he asked. Roisin nodded and grinned. "I'll pick you up around 6."

"Okay," she said before climbing into the driver's seat. He waited until she had driven off before turning and getting into his truck.

Sighing, he pulled out and started towards La Push, knowing exactly where he was going to go next.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, posting a few chapters tonight. Just because the story is starting to pick up and I'm excited to get into it. And well, gah, Paul and Roisin… so fun to work out that dynamic. And get into all the secrets… Paul's are obvious, but Ro's… oh man… And I spread it all out.
> 
> Thanks for reading and following!


	12. Of Sun and Shadows

Paul pulled up and parked in the street in front of the two-story house where Jared lived with his family. He was actually surprised that his best friend was even home, considering he was Kim's whenever he wasn't hanging out at Paul's or with the packs.

Regardless, Paul was happy he was there. His thoughts were rather crowded as he walked up the path, seeing the cheerful fall-themed wreath on the bright blue door.

He had barely knocked when it swung open.

"Dude, what are you doing here? Though you had a hot date," Jared said with a smirk as he stepped back and let Paul in.

"Got cut short. Again," he said, not hiding his frustration. Jared just chuckled as he started towards the stairs.

"Hey, Paul!" his mother called from the kitchen.

"Hi, Mrs. Cameron," he shouted back.

"You want some food?" she asked.

"I'm good, thanks," Paul said, thankful he had brought in his leftovers with him. Already, his stomach was growling as he started up the stairs. They had barely had a chance to eat before Roisin had to leave.

"What was it this time?" Jared asked as they walked into his room and Paul flopped back on his bed after putting the to-go boxes on his nightstand.

"Another family emergency. This time Mae," Paul groaned, staring up at the ceiling.

"Seriously? You have got some bad luck, my friend," Jared replied with a chuckle as he sat in his desk chair.

"Tell me about it," Paul said, sitting up. "I feel like maybe they don't like me..."

"That or they have some serious family drama," Jared said. "Good luck with that." Paul rolled his eyes.

He thought things were going well - again. But yet again, Roisin ran off just as things were getting good because of some family something or another. Either her family had serious issues, or it was intentional, as much as Paul didn't want to think it was. Roisin had seemed genuinely annoyed that Mae was constantly messaging her, then slightly worried. Surely she hadn't asked Mae to do it so she would have an out from the date.

Though, again, there was still a lot for Paul to learn about her. For all he knew, she was a brilliant actress. But if that were the case, why did she keep making plans to meet with him?

"What? Are you thinking it's on purpose?" Jared asked, correctly guessing where Paul's thoughts had gone.

"Maybe," Paul said. "Whether it's her cousin doing it to get in between us or…"

The two sat and contemplated this for a moment, neither wanting to vocalize the possibility that Roisin could be potentially rejecting the imprint. But the more Paul thought about it, the more he felt that wasn't the case. It couldn't be, right?

"But you're going to see her again, right?" Jared asked.

"Yea, we're going out again on Friday," Paul replied. "She actually suggested it."

"Well, I think we can rule out Roisin doing it intentionally, then. She wouldn't want to see you again if she was coming up with all these ruses to leave early," Jared said sensibly. "Though better hope she turns her phone off next time."

Paul snorted.

"We're going to see a movie, so she's going to have to," he said, feeling a bit better. "I might just throw it out the car window on the way to Port Angeles."

Paul reached over for the first box and opened it, starting to dig into the onion rings and tator tots. They were slightly cold and soggy at this point, but he didn't care. Food was food in his book. And he was starving.

"So outside of the early end, how'd it go?" Jared asked, leaning back in his chair, a smirk appearing.

"Good," Paul said, though it was slightly muffled from the food. He smiled slightly as he thought back over everything. "Should have seen the glare she gave the waitress when she batted her eyes at me."

Jared rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"Why am I not surprised you'd find that hot?" he replied.

"Called her babe so the waitress got the idea and left us alone," Paul said.

"And how did that go over?" Jared asked.

"She liked it. Beginning to think there might be a bit of a spitfire in there somewhere," Paul commented.

"You sure? She's seemed pretty mellow to me so far. And figured the whole point of you imprinting was to find someone that keeps _you_ calm," Jared said. "We all know how easily you lose your shit."

"Keeping _me_ calm doesn't mean she's gotta be," Paul said. Jared just chuckled and shook his head. "I'm beginning to think there's a lot more going on under the surface with her."

"Just so long as you don't hop on Jacob's conspiracy theories," Jared said. Paul snorted. "Embry and Quil have about had it with the latest one."

"He's got another?" Paul asked, pausing before he shoved a handful of fries into his mouth.

"I've lost track at this point," Jared said. "Still not sure just where he got the idea that there's something weird going on. Graffiti? That's nothing new. And it's all in Forks - that's not our territory, last I checked."

"Maybe he's aching so much for some sort of supernatural disaster that he's resorted to creating his own," Paul said with a chuckle.

"Could be," Jared replied. Paul put the now empty box aside and reached for the other, pulling out and then biting down into his half-eaten hamburger.

There was a knock at the door and Jared got up and saw his mom with a tray full of leftovers from the Camerons' dinner that night.

"Figured you'd end up hungry again soon enough," she said, walking in and setting it down on the desk.

Thank god Jared's mom understood their metabolism without asking a ton of questions. Unlike Paul's dad, she wasn't privy to the tribe's secrets, though Jared's dad was. They had both decided it was for the best that she didn't know, though Jared's dad had stepped in to explain away things should something strange happen in front of her. Or if she caught him leaving for patrols, which happened rarely anymore. Jared had gotten good at sneaking out for them. For not the first time, Paul was glad he didn't have to hide anything from his dad. Would have made life a lot harder.

"Thanks, Mrs. Cameron," Paul said, just barely managing to swallow his mouthful of hamburger before speaking.

"Have fun, boys," she said before walking out and shutting the door behind her. Paul put the hamburger aside and walked over to the desk, his mouth starting to water.

"I swear to god, you are a bottomless pit…"

****

"What's going on?" Roisin shouted as she charged into the house. She came to an abrupt stop and immediately was fighting to keep her anger in check.

 _Emergency, my ass,_ she thought bitterly. Whatever this was, Mae clearly believed that she needed Roisin there. But it was obvious that there was nothing serious going on at all.

Mae hopped up from the couch and skipped over to her, a wide grin on her face and a drink in her hand. Carly and Rosemary smirked from where they remained seated in the living room, watching the interaction with bated breath.

"You called me home for this?" Roisin hissed, narrowing her eyes at Mae.

"Not in front of the mortals," Mae sang softly as she looped her arm through Roisin's and led her into the living room. "We just had to save you from that horrible date."

"It wasn't horrible. Until you interrupted it," Roisin snapped. Mae shoved her down on the couch.

"You can do so much better," Carly said.

"Yea, you know Ethan is really into you. It's the quarterback. Really hot," Rosemary added. "I can give him your number, if you want…"

Roisin looked back and forth between the two, wondering just what the hell was going on. Neither of them had ever seemed interested in being friends with her. Nor had they shown any sort of interest in her love life. Well, except for the one day they had very nearly insulted Paul in front of her. They were fast learners and hadn't mentioned him at all since then.

"No, Ro should go out with Matt," Mae shouted out as she walked into the kitchen. "So much more fun. And damn, that boy can kiss."

"Thanks, but I'm good," Roisin said, starting to stand. If she escaped now, she could lock herself in her room and call Paul.

"You know, you should wear your hair down more," Carly said, grabbing her arm and pulling her back down. She then reached up and pulled out the elastic holding it up and proceeded to fluff it out. "That looks so much better."

"Oh my god, do you even wear makeup? Your skin is so gorgeous," Rosemary gushed, moving to sit on her other side.

"Huh?" Roisin replied. Okay, this was getting extremely weird. She then glared towards the kitchen, knowing exactly what was going on.

Manipulation was Mae's forte. It's how she was able to get away with so much back at the Summer Court. Humans were far easier for her to mess with than fae. And well, they both knew that Roisin was far too powerful for Mae to even attempt it. But that didn't stop Roisin from sometimes wishing she had the same gift - certainly would make living with Mae easier at times.

"Ooo, who are you thinking about taking to homecoming?" Carly asked, clapping her hands in glee.

"Hold on," Roisin said as she managed to escape from the sofa and charged into the kitchen. As soon as she stepped in, a wall of flames appeared in the doorway, though the mortals in the living room couldn't see it, blocking out the most likely to be loud exchange that was about to go down. "What the hell are you doing, Mae?!"

"Just wanted to remind you that you have options," Mae said, glancing over at her from where she was making a smoothie.

"I don't want options! And I don't need them," Roisin retorted. "And since when did you have a problem with me seeing Paul?"

"Since you became obsessed with him," Mae said simply.

"I'm not obsessed with him!" Roisin shouted. "I'm just trying to get to know him, which could go a lot smoother if you would stop screwing things up!"

"And why should I help you?!" Mae shouted, spinning to face Roisin, her delicate features contorted into an angry scowl. "He's mortal, Ro! You're not supposed to be getting attached to him anyway!"

"You were _just_ trying to set me up with another mortal!" Roisin shouted back.

"Yea. For fun! To remind you that we're supposed to be having fun!"

"Well, it's not like I'm getting much of an opportunity to get attached to him with you butting in, am I?" Roisin retorted.

"You're fucking choosing him over me and the sad thing is, you don't even realize you're doing it!" Mae shouted.

"I am not. Don't be ridiculous," Roisin scoffed.

"You were already pulling away from me, but then you meet him and suddenly, you don't want to have parties anymore. And you're always talking to Tara or Megan about him. Even when you hang out at home, you're always checking your phone or texting him or shutting yourself up in your room talking on the phone _to him_! He's a just a fucking mortal! I'M SUPPOSED TO BE YOUR BEST FRIEND!" Mae screeched.

"Okay, I think you're blowing this way out of proportion," Roisin said, rolling her eyes. "We've been on two dates. It's your own damn fault I said no more parties. I am _not_ always on my phone when I hang out with you. And I have more classes with Tara and Megan than I do with you, which is why I talk to them more at school. That is not me choosing him over you or choosing anyone over you. Stop being so dramatic."

"I AM NOT BEING DRAMATIC!" Mae shrieked, causing Roisin to jump slightly.

Mae's face had gone red and her wings were fluttering angrily behind her. She glared at Roisin a few moments before taking a deep breath.

"I just don't want to lose my best friend," Mae said a bit more softly. "But it looks like I'm too late."

She walked towards the door as Roisin allowed the flames to disappear, then strode back out into the living room. Roisin stood a bit longer before sneaking out and going to her room, hearing Mae laugh and joke with Carly and Rosemary, acting as though their argument had never happened.

As she sat on her bed, Roisin wondered just what the hell had just happened. And how she had missed the fact that Mae was this upset. She always seemed happy when they hung out. And Roisin had made a point to not constantly check her phone when they were hanging out, but maybe she hadn't been doing as good a job as she thought.

Roisin then stopped and shook her head. She had wanted Mae to become more independent in Forks. To finally grow up a bit. They had always been together and done everything together, and to be honest, Roisin was starting to get tired of doing the same things over and over again.

The endless cycle of parties and not caring about anything but themselves. Never creating lasting bonds with others outside their little circle. Part of why Roisin ran away to the mortal world was because she wanted something different. She wanted to experience it all - everything that she couldn't in the Summer Court.

Freedom.

She thought Mae wanted the same thing, but maybe Roisin was wrong. She suddenly felt guilty. Mae didn't know the full reason why she had wanted to run away. At the time, she had convinced herself that it was for Mae's sake, but really it was for her own. She wanted to forget it had ever happened, even though it haunted her dreams still. There was also the shame.

Shame that she had allowed it to happen. That she hadn't been strong enough. Even though Sean - who did know about it - had told her over and over again, that nothing that had happened was her fault.

Leaning over, Roisin rubbed her face, her goal to call Paul now long forgotten, even though the urge to do so was strong. She wished he could come over and just hold her. But that would be beyond a bad idea right now. So instead, she stood and walked to her bathroom and turned on the hot water in the tub. Maybe a long soak would help clear her mind.

****

Paul rolled over in bed and opened his eyes, then started, not expecting to see Roisin lying next to him. He looked around the dark room and then back at her. How the hell did she get in? And just how long had she been here?

"Hi," she said softly.

"Hi," he replied. "How did you get in? How do you even know where I live?"

Roisin smiled slightly, a soft laugh leaving her lips.

"You let me in, silly," she said, reaching up to tap his forehead with a slender finger.

Ah. It was another dream. Right. Paul smiled and then reached over and grabbed her, pulling her into his arms. A content sigh left her lips as she settled her head on his chest, her arms also around him. He had to admit that this was a fair bit milder than previous dreams. For starters, they were both clothed, though he was only in a pair of boxer shorts that he usually slept in. But he still enjoyed it. Just holding her close like this. It calmed him.

"This is nice," she said softly. "I mean, I like the other dreams, but I like this too."

Paul smiled softly as she looked up and met his eyes. He reached up and caressed her cheek.

"Yea, I like it too," he replied. "And well, just so you know, I don't constantly dream about sex." Roisin chuckled and shook her head.

As he looked into her eyes, he swore he could see a clear, blue summer sky. Feel the summer breeze across his face. He wasn't completely sure just why she always made him think of summer, but was willing to embrace it regardless. It had always been his favorite season as well. Maybe that had something to do with it.

"I feel like you really see me," she whispered, a contemplative look on her face. "But I also feel like you're hiding something. What do you not want me to see?"

Paul felt his stomach drop. Even though this was just a dream, a sliver of fear ran through him. Was this just his subconscious worrying about finally telling her the truth and how she would react? Or did she actually suspect that he wasn't being as truthful with her? He racked his brain trying to think if he had said anything that would come off that way.

"But I suppose it's fair. I'm keeping secrets too," she then murmured. Paul frowned.

He had felt as much, but again, he hadn't thought he let on around her.

"Aren't we a pair? All our secrets," she then said, settling her head on his chest again.

"It's okay. You can tell me. When you're ready. And I'll tell you everything… when I can," he said softly.

Roisin hummed her agreement, snuggling closer to him.

"Let's just stay like this… always…"

"Okay," he replied softly. He leaned down and kissed the top of her head, tightening his arms around her.

He wished that this was real. That Roisin was actually here in his arms, falling asleep with him. That this could be every night. But at the same time he couldn't help but worry about the future. When he finally told her the truth, would she believe him? Would she accept him, flaws and all? Wolf and all?

He hoped that she might.

****

Roisin sighed as she pulled into the garage and turned the car off after school the next day. Mae had been avoiding her since their fight. She had gone out after her bath when she heard no more laughter, but Mae had shut herself up in her room on the second floor and didn't answer when she knocked.

When she got up for school, Mae had breezed out of the house, saying that Carly was giving her a ride, though the comment was directed at Sean as she pointedly ignored Roisin's existence.

All dayl, Roisin had tried to talk to her, but Mae had snubbed her, going as far as to move her small court to a different table that was completely full at lunch when Roisin walked into the cafeteria. All she could do was sit at their usual table with Tara, Megan and Trey, staring woefully in Mae's direction. She only managed to tear her eyes away when Tara had brought up that more of the strange graffiti had popped up. But even that couldn't keep her attention all that long.

Frowning still, Roisin got out of the Jeep, pulling her bag with her as she made her way into the house. She didn't know where Mae was right now, but she was pretty sure she was off with Carly and Rosemary. At least Roisin knew that she wasn't the one behind the weird signs popping up around the town.

But that was yet another mystery that she was going to have to find out.

"Where's Mae?" Sean asked as she walked in the main part of the house.

Roisin sighed and kept walking over to the couch where she flopped down, dropping her bag on the floor.

"Where do you think?" she asked as he followed her over, perching on the arm of the couch.

"Still not talking to you?" he asked. Roisin shook her head.

"It was a bad fight," she reminded him.

"But this is Mae, she'll come around soon enough and everything can go back to how it was," he replied. Roisin gave him a dubious look. "You and I both know Mae." She sighed again.

"I hope so. I just want to apologize. I didn't mean to pull away so much. I just… wanted her to realize that she doesn't need to depend on me so much," she said. "But maybe that's not a good idea."

"No. Your life has always revolved around her and taking care of her. It's about time she learned to survive on her own a bit," he said. "You have enough of your own problems to deal with."

Roisin didn't reply, just studied him. This was true. And honestly, she should be focusing on that. They had been lucky the last 100 years, but she felt like it would only last for so long. They needed to be figuring a way out of the mess she had left behind in the Summer Court. Not dealing with Mae's tantrums.

"I've been thinking about it, and… maybe we should consider what I suggested before," he started. Roisin leaned over and rubbed her temples.

"I told you, I won't force you to go back," she said, cutting him off. "You keep bringing it up and I keep telling you no."

"But it's the most direct solution," he replied calmly. "And I would do it if it meant you could finally be free of them. All of them."

Roisin looked over and smiled wanly at him. Bless Sean. He was always helping her. And while she appreciated it, this was asking too much of him - and had every chance of failing. She couldn't ask him to do this. It was far too risky.

"No, I think there's another way. We just have to find it," she said, shutting him down yet again. Sean sighed.

"If that's what you want," he said. Roisin nodded. "Heard in town today that there's more of that graffiti around."

"Saw some of it when I was out with Paul last night. It's definitely fae but Mae swore she's not doing it," she said, frowning. "You think we should do something about it?"

"Maybe? So far it's just graffiti. And harmless," he said. "Should definitely keep an eye on it, though." Roisin nodded, agreeing.

Even if it wasn't anything serious - and the mortals thought it was gibberish - it was a clear calling card for other fae. And it meant that there were other fae in Forks than just them. They absolutely did not need a ton of fae congregating here. The town was too small and it would be hard to explain away everything.

"You're still talking to him, then?" Sean then asked. Roisin's eyebrows rose.

"Yea. Though I haven't told him about the fight. We're going to see a movie tomorrow night," she replied. Sean frowned and she knew what he was going to say. "I'm not getting too attached."

"Are you sure about that? One thing Mae had right is that you are spending a lot of time talking to him. Seeing him," Sean said. "Is there more you're not telling me?"

Roisin looked away, taking a deep breath and going over how to respond. She really didn't want him more worried about her. And well, she wasn't all that worried even though she couldn't completely explain this sudden, strong connection with Paul to herself. They all had it right that normally fae didn't get so attached to mortals. Especially not this quickly. Hell, she didn't even think they got attached to their own kind this quickly.

"I've got it under control," she said, though she felt slight discomfort as she said it, signalling that it wasn't fully true. It was as close to lying as she could get. "It's fine."

Sean didn't respond, causing her to look over to him. He was studying her, light shadows dancing around him. They were only slight manifestations of his true power, as he had long ago hidden who he truly was from other fae. Roisin had only seen it a few times - once when he had explained who he was to her and another when they had run into some trouble in Paris with another group of Shadow fae.

As another royal, she had picked up that there was something different about him almost immediately, though he had taught her to hide the full extent of her essence as well. It was safer for the both of them this way.

"It's fine," she said again, pushing up from the couch. "I should get my homework out of the way. Let me know when Mae gets home."

She didn't wait for an answer as she walked to her bedroom.

"Okay."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Getting into stuff! Hope you enjoy!
> 
> Thanks for reading and following!


	13. Putting Out Fires

Paul sat in his truck and stared at the large house a few moments before he got out. This was far different than the first time he came here for the party. There was no long line of cars down the drive, nor were there strobe lights or loud music. It was actually really quiet, which he figured had more to do with the fact they were out in the middle of the woods. But it was also peaceful. Welcoming.

Needless to say, if someone other than Roisin answered the door, Paul wasn't so sure the welcoming feeling would last.

He finally got out and walked up to the door, slightly nervous as he rang the bell and then stepped back to wait. The door opened almost immediately, revealing a scowling Sean. Paul nearly jumped, his eyes wide, though he had already been expecting this. He then cleared his throat and put on his most winning smile (at least he hoped).

"Hi, hello… Mr. O'Connor… sir. I'm here to pick up Roisin," he said, wondering if he should shake his hand or not. Sean just stood there, staring at him, as he slowly crossed his arms in front of him. Okay, maybe no shaking of the hand. "We, um, we have a date tonight…"

Sean raised an eyebrow at him, but didn't move to let him in. Didn't say anything. There wasn't much that scared Paul, but he had to admit he was slightly frightened right now. No, not frightened because he didn't get afraid - more like… extremely concerned. Sure, Paul was used to disapproving parents, but that never really bothered him. However, there was something about the way Sean stared him down. That air of menace and foreboding was most definitely back.

"Oh my god, stop it, Sean."

Paul breathed a sigh of relief as Roisin pulled her uncle back and frowned up at him, the moment of panic passing. Sean looked down at her, raising an eyebrow, and two seemed to enter a battle of the wills for a few moments. Finally, he stepped back, allowing Roisin out the door.

"Not too late," he said sternly.

"I know," Roisin replied, not even bothering to look at him as she smiled at Paul. She stepped up and hugged him, kissing him on the cheek in the process. She then turned back to Sean. "Seriously, you don't have to hover. I'll see you in the morning. Tell Cara I said hi."

Paul chanced a glance at Sean after that small display of affection, almost worried he had made him angier. Surprisingly, it looked as though Sean was barely suppressing a smile. Ah, so he was one of those uncles that took joy in scaring the crap out of his niece's dates when they came to pick them up.

Paul wasn't sure if he should be relieved that Sean didn't hate him, or angry that he was pulling the overprotective bullshit.

"Be safe," Sean called out with a smirk and a wink, though before Paul could react, Roisin had his hand and was yanking him towards the truck.

"Is he always like that?" he asked, looking down at her.

"Like what? Annoying?" she asked, smiling slightly, though Paul could easily tell that it didn't completely reach her eyes.

Okay. He had picked up through their phone conversations and texts this week - or well, he supposed the imprint also had something to do with it - that something was bothering her. This just confirmed it. At least they had an hour-long drive to Port Angeles. More than enough time to get it out of her and try to make things better.

Huh? Wait. Since when did Paul ever try to make things better? Right. Imprint. God, this was weird and wonderful all at the same time, which certainly made for a sometimes confusing combination of emotions.

"More like intimidating," Paul said as they reached the truck and he pulled the passenger side door open. Roisin laughed softly.

"Sean intimidates you?" she asked as she climbed in.

"A little bit, but I'm not sure why since I'm so much-" Paul stopped speaking before he finished the sentence. He hadn't meant to say that, even though he thought it true - he was much larger and, he felt, stronger than Sean. He had no doubt if it ever came down to a physical fight, he could take him.

Maybe it was an authority figure thing. Yea, that had to be it.

"I wouldn't underestimate him. He's surprisingly strong. And can get pretty scary if you push him the wrong way," she said.

"Oh… shit, he hates me, doesn't he," Paul said, gulping and glancing back towards the house. He was fully expecting to see Sean watching from one of the windows.

But Roisin guided his head back around to her, a small smile on her lips. She pressed a brief kiss to his lips that had warmth and calm spreading through his body.

"Don't worry about Sean," she said before turning back into the truck and reaching for her seatbelt.

Paul shook his head slightly to clear it and then shut the door. He quickly walked around the hood and got in on the other side. He pulled on his seatbelt and started the car, then took off, realizing if he didn't hurry, they wouldn't have time to go to the snack stand before the movie started.

Roisin leaned forward and messed with the radio - something that would usually get someone chewed up and spit out, though for some reason Paul didn't want to stop her - finally stopping on some sort of soft, acoustic song. All guitars and smooth crooning. She then sat back in the seat and turned towards the window, her brow furrowed slightly.

Paul could feel it more strongly in his bones. Something was upsetting Roisin, though she had been a bit better at trying to cover it earlier. Maybe it was linked to the family emergency on Wednesday. She still hadn't told him what it was. Hadn't even mentioned it, now that he thought about it. Anytime he tried to bring it up, she would skate around it and end up changing the subject.

"Everything okay?" he asked. Roisin sat up suddenly, her eyes wide as though she had gotten lost in her thoughts for a moment. "You seem a bit off. This anything about the family emergency?"

Roisin stared at him a few moments and then sighed, looking down at her hands as she studied her nails, seeming hesitant.

"You know, you can tell me… whatever it is. Maybe I can help," he ventured. She glanced at him again.

"So… When I got back to the house that night, Mae and I got into this huge fight. She hasn't spoken to me since," she finally admitted, looking up at the road.

"What happened?" he asked, feeling a spike of dislike towards Mae.

"I came back and found out there was no emergency. She just… really wanted me to hang with her and her friends. But then we started yelling at each other and..." she stopped speaking for a bit, her brow furrowed. "We've never had a fight like this before and I don't know what to say or do to fix it."

Paul wasn't sure how to respond. He wasn't good with girl issues. Or well, just dealing with issues in general. He tended to attempt to solve his own problems with his fists more often than not. True, Sam and Jared would often force him to sit down and talk things out rather than allowing him to clobber whoever made him angry, but it still didn't feel very natural for him. Paul was more a man of action than words.

"Have you tried to fix it?" he asked, keeping his voice gentle and trying to sound like he knew what he was talking about, rather than grasping for straws like he was currently doing. Roisin glanced at him and laughed softly.

"I've tried talking to her. She just ignores me. Or avoids me altogether," she replied ruefully with a slight roll of her eyes.

"Well… what was the fight about?" he then asked, realizing she had never actually said anything about the source of the issue. Roisin remained silent a bit longer this time.

Okay, she obviously didn't want to tell him. Shit, he really hoped it wasn't about him, thinking back to his assumption that the interruptions on their dates were intentional. Well, this one had been intentional, though he wasn't exactly sure why. He was going to have to work harder to win over the rest of Roisin's family, it seemed. Unless he had it all wrong and this was about something else completely, which was just as plausible.

"Just… more of what I talked about before. We're… changing. And she's not exactly happy with how I'm changing," Roisin replied finally.

"Well, do you think you're changing for the better? Or the worse?" he asked, silently wondering where this was coming from. He actually sounded like he knew what he was doing with that question.

"I'm not really sure," she said. Paul looked over at her, seeing the concerned look on her face.

"I admit… I'm not so good with this sort of thing, but I guess the only thing you can do is… keep trying to talk to her. But if she won't talk to you… after awhile you'll have to make peace with the fact that there probably isn't much you can do," he said.

He wasn't sure if that helped at all, but he was desperate to say or do anything that might make her feel better. Roisin looked over at him, a soft smile on her face.

"Yea? How do you usually solve problems, then?" she asked, smoothly directing the conversation back to him yet again. He chuckled and kept his eyes on the road.

"Truthfully? I used to get into a lot of fist fights," he said, not wanting to chance looking at her. "Wouldn't recommend that with Mae."

He heard her laugh softly and he glanced over at her. She was smiling - a genuine smile this time.

"Yea, I don't think that would fix anything," she said, though for a moment it almost looked like she was considering.

Maybe they _were_ more alike than he previously thought.

"You and Mae have been friends a long time. I'm sure whatever it was about, eventually you'll work it out. Sometimes Jared and I have misunderstandings. We might not talk a couple days, but eventually it works itself out and we go back to normal," he said.

And, well, a lot of times, it still took the two of them throwing a few punches to get over it. But yea, not something he was keen on sharing at the moment.

"Yea, you might be right," she said with a sigh. "Thanks… for listening to me and giving me some good advice…"

"Anytime, Ro," he replied, smiling at her. He saw her smile grow.

"So… what movie are we going to see?" she then asked, seeming brighter.

"Thought I'd let you choose. There's this rom-com that's supposed to be really funny with Jessica Alba. And then a scary movie with Josh Harnett. It's vampires in Alaska or something," he said, thankful he had checked out the times and such in advance.

Roisin thought it over a bit before turning to him, grinning a bit deviously.

"Josh Harnett and vampires. Definitely," she replied.

"You sure? It's supposed to be gory," he said, not sure if she would be up for it.

"Eh, I can handle a bit of gore," she replied nonchalantly.

Paul smiled, finding he liked that response. There was definitely a more devious side to Roisin, he decided. And he hoped that he would get to see more of it soon.

"Then it's settled," he replied, turning his attention back to the road.

"So… how are things in La Push?" Roisin then asked, seeming eager to keep the conversation focused on him.

"Good, though, you know those weird signs that have been popping up in Forks? Looks like whoever is doing it is getting bored. They started showing up in La Push," he said. Roisin turned to him, her eyes wide.

"When?" she asked, seeming far more worried about it than Paul thought was warranted. Unless she knew something about it.

No, he was not about to let Jacob get to him.

"Started showing up yesterday. Just a couple," he replied. "Police are looking into it. And it's just spray paint. Nothing serious. In fact, they were all painted over by today."

"Oh," Roisin said, settling back into her seat, though her brow was still furrowed.

"Seriously, Ro. You don't have to worry," he replied with a chuckle. "It's a bunch of harmless graffiti." She nodded.

"Right."

Okay, she was definitely worried. Maybe he shouldn't have brought it up. He needed to change the topic fast.

"We were thinking about doing a bonfire on the beach soon. You want to come?" he asked.

Roisin looked over at him, a slight blush coming over her cheeks and her mood changing instantly. She still seemed a bit worried, but he had a feeling it was for different reasons.

"We? You mean… you and all your friends?" she asked. Paul chuckled, wondering just why she was nervous.

"You've already met most of them," he said. "Though there are a few others you haven't yet. But there's nothing to worry about. I know they'll like you."

"So… I would be going as your date," she then stated.

It was Paul's turn to blush. Which was strange. He couldn't recall a time when he had blushed as much as he had since meeting Roisin. Had to be the imprint.

"Yea… as my date," he confirmed. Roisin's smile blossomed.

"Okay, yea. I'm in."

****

Roisin felt loads better.

They had settled into talking about the bonfire and everyone in Paul's friend group that Roisin hadn't met yet, before moving on to other, lighter topics. The hour-long drive passed pretty quickly and soon they were at the theater, with Paul buying their tickets. She then insisted on getting the snacks and now they were settled in their seats with way more food than Roisin usually got when she went to see a movie.

Paul really could put it away. He must work out a lot. That was the only explanation she could think of to explain how he managed to be so cut while eating a ton - dear goddess how she dreamed of feeling those rock hard abs again, maybe even actually seeing them. Didn't she read something about professional athletes needing to eat a lot of food to keep up their form or something? Maybe that was it… though he never actually talked about playing sports or working out, now that she really thought about it. A genetic thing, maybe?

And then he was so unnaturally warm all the time. Even now, she could feel heat radiating from his body through her clothes and they were barely touching. Maybe it was a genetic thing as well. Or maybe it was her? No, that made no sense.

Paul smiled at her as the lights dimmed. She turned to the screen, smiling into her soda as the previews started up. About halfway through, he slid his arm around the back of her chair and she naturally snuggled against him, finding his warmth comforting. Just as she was getting settled, there was something out of the corner of her eye.

Trying not to alert Paul of anything, she surreptitiously glanced over, but all she saw were the other moviegoers. Seriously, she was letting the graffiti get to her. They were in Port Angeles. Nothing fae was going on here.

So she settled back in to watch the movie, tossing some butter popcorn into her mouth as the screen dimmed and the movie started.

Immediately, she realized this was a bad idea.

Shit. It was set in Alaska. She should have fucking known better.

As soon as a vast, frozen wasteland appeared on the giant movie screen, filling her vision, her mind went to places she didn't want to go. Fuck. She should have chosen the stupid rom-com. But it was too late to walk out now and she couldn't let Paul know anything was wrong, so she fought to keep calm. Regulate her breathing. Surely she could make it through a stupid mortal movie about vampires. Even if it was set in a land covered in snow and ice.

She felt Paul's hand begin to rub up and down on her arm. She didn't look at him, worried she was somehow showing that she was upset. Instead, she tried to keep her body relaxing, focusing on the soothing touch of his hand.

 _Keep it together,_ she urged herself silently.

Roisin didn't even realize that she began to tense up more and more as the movie continued on, but at one point, Paul finally leaned over towards her.

"You okay?" he whispered in her ear.

She didn't respond at first. There was nothing dramatic going on screen. There was no reason for her to be so tense as nothing scary had even happened in the movie yet.

But she couldn't lie. And telling him that she was fine would be lying. Shit. She needed to think.

Before she could answer him, the first attack happened on screen and Roisin jumped and gasped, nearly completely tossing her popcorn box into the air, though she was grateful for some sort of action that she could focus on rather than the snow and ice. She shot him an embarrassed smile.

"Sorry," she breathed. Paul seemed to accept this as he turned back to the screen, though he continued to glance at her out of the corner of his eye every so often.

Roisin looked back at the screen, not bothered by the blood and violence. Honestly, she had seen worse. Fae were far more vicious than mortals seemed to think, if the depictions of them in pop culture were anything to go by. For a time, she was able to stay calm. But as more and more scenes involving the barren snowy landscape showed, the more she felt herself slipping.

A palace of snow and ice. Cold creeping into her veins and bones. Overwhelming fear.

Roisin knew her breathing was becoming erratic. And that Paul knew something was wrong, even though she was trying so hard to hold onto control. Another vampire attack happened on screen and Roisin squeezed her eyes shut, but that was a bad idea.

All she could see were ice blue eyes. A cruel smile.

_You are mine..._

There was a loud noise and Roisin jumped, her popcorn flying through the air. She could hear complaints from people around her, but she ignored it as she leaned over, putting her head between her knees as she hugged herself and began to rock up and down, just trying to breathe.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. This wasn't supposed to happen. This shouldn't be happening. Why was this happening?

"Ro, just breathe," Paul said softly, rubbing her back.

"What the fuck, man?" a voice hissed next to him.

"She's having a panic attack," Paul growled at him.

"Then get her the fuck out."

Roisin could feel the rumble of a growl that ran through Paul. Somehow she managed to gather her wits enough to sit up.

"Come on," she said softly, grabbing his arm and standing.

Earning a lot of glares and complaints, she somehow managed to pull Paul out of their row and then out of the theater. Once there, she collapsed on a bench, again dropping her head between her knees and fighting off the onslaught of memories as her entire body began to shake.

Even though she was far away and she knew she was safe here in the mortal world, she could feel the bitter cold. The bite of ice forming up her arms, around her throat.

"Ro, what's going on?" Paul asked, warmth enveloping her as he sat down next to her and put his arm around her. She leaned into his touch, welcoming his body heat and willing it to chase away the cold. "God, you feel clammy."

She couldn't speak. Not yet.

"Dude… you left all your fucking trash!"

Roisin's eyes flew open as she looked over, seeing the guy who had been sitting next to her had followed them out, holding up some of the food containers. Apparently he was aching for a fight. Immediately, Paul was on his feet, towering over the guy. He suddenly started backing away, his eyes going wide.

"What? You got something to say now?" he growled. For a moment, Roisin was distracted from the whirlpool in her mind.

She wasn't sure just why he was being so aggressive - his entire body was tense and his hands had already formed fists, reading to strike out - or why she found it so attractive. But then she realized she needed to stop this before someone called the police or they got kicked out.

"Paul, it's fine," she said. "Leave it."

In an instant, the shaking stopped, though he didn't back away from the guy, who now held his hands up in defeat.

"Paul," she said again.

"Get out of my sight," Paul growled before turning back to her and returning to her side, his look of fury now replaced with one of concern. "Are you okay?"

"Better," she said with a weak smile, almost having emotional whiplash with the rapid change in the tone of his voice. The aggressive edge was gone and replaced with a soothing, gentleness.

"I'm sorry. I didn't realize the movie would be that scary," he said, looking guilty.

"It's fine. I was the one that chose it," she replied. "I didn't know it would be like... _that_." She looked away from him, finding it easier to fight off the memories with him next to her. "Sorry I lost it in there."

"You don't need to apologize," he said immediately. "And you don't need to be embarrassed."

Roisin smiled up at him, wondering just how someone could be so understanding without knowing anything. For a moment, it was on the tip of her tongue to tell him everything. That she wasn't human. That she had run away. Why she ran away. But she didn't. She couldn't.

"Maybe we should go back to town or something," he suggested. But Roisin didn't want the date to be over. She didn't want to be away from him.

"We could go back to my place. Watch some movies there," she said instantly. Sean was out for the night with Cara and Roisin was fairly sure that Mae would be out with Carly and Rosemary doing goddess knew what.

It would be just the two of them alone in the house.

"Yea, that sounds good," Paul said, seeming happy with the suggestion. Probably because he knew as well that they would have the house to themselves.

They then stood and walked out of the theater hand-in-hand, quickly making their way to his truck. They didn't talk for a bit and Roisin used the time to calm herself.

She was fine. She was in the mortal world. Far from the Winter Court. And she would never have to go back there. Hopefully. They still hadn't found a way out of her conundrum.

"You want to talk about it?" Paul finally asked, glancing at her. Roisin stiffened unconsciously.

But she should have expected this. Normal people didn't have panic attacks in scary movies. At least she didn't think they did. Maybe they did...

"Not really," she replied. "Not… now, anyway. But maybe later…"

He nodded, seeming to accept this.

"Okay. But you know that you don't have to be afraid or embarrassed or anything. You can tell me. I'm not going anywhere," he vowed.

Roisin looked over, studying him. He kept his eyes on the road, but glanced at her a couple times. She could see his muscles tensing slightly under his jacket, as though he knew that someone had hurt her and he wanted nothing more than to go after them. And she found this comforting. Endearing, in a way, that he wanted to run off and fight for her. Even though she knew there was nothing he could do.

And she believed him. That he wasn't going anywhere.

"Thanks," she said. Paul just smiled and then reached over, turning the radio on.

Roisin settled into her seat and looked out the window, but after a few moments, she felt his hand cover hers on the seat. A smile came over her face as she looked at him, intertwining her fingers with his.

She knew he was mortal. Knew this wouldn't last. But she couldn't help but wish that it could.

****

As soon as they pulled up in front of the house, all the warm fuzzies from the car ride back were gone. Roisin didn't even wait for Paul to turn off the truck before opening the door and hopping out, then coming to a stop as she stared at the house.

Her anger kicked in as soon as they hit the long drive through the trees to the house, already seeing the cars lining it and then spiked by the time they had made their way up to the house.

She was absolutely livid. Of all the things for Mae to do to get back at Roisin, she had to resort to this.

"I thought you said no more parties," Paul said, coming up to her side and sounding confused.

"I did," Roisin growled, sure there was heat radiating off her, but she didn't bother to temper herself.

Before she had wanted to fix things with Mae. Apologize. But this… oh, Roisin was going to let her have it. And if she saw _one drop_ of fae wine, she just might have a hurricane-level blowout with her so-called best friend.

"Come on," she said, stomping up to the front door. "I've got words for Mae."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So… shit's about to go down…
> 
> As always, thanks for reading and following!


	14. Chasing Sunshine

Paul found it hard to keep up with Roisin as she bounded into the house and through the foyer. Thankfully, she came to a stop in the living room, her eyes roaming over the crowd, obviously searching for Mae.

He felt a bit conflicted. On the one hand, he had never seen her this angry before and part of him found it attractive. His imprint seemed to have a bit of bite, it seemed. He was struggling to stay focused, his thoughts wandering to how he could possibly get her away from the crowd and to her bedroom. (He really needed to stop thinking about making out with her at inopportune times.) On the other, from the murderous look on Roisin's face, he was beginning to think he might need to step in at some point. While he didn't think she was violent, there was a vibe around her that told him she was not even attempting to control her wrath.

Which was interesting, to say the least. Normally he was the one that needed to be calmed down or held back. He wasn't used to the roles being reversed. Especially so abruptly. It wasn't much more than an hour ago that she was stopping him before he punched the idiot at the theater. In his mind, it was completely uncalled for for him to follow them outside. Any idiot could see that Roisin was deeply disturbed by the movie - though he wasn't sure why - and having a panic attack. That she couldn't help it.

The guy was aching for a fight and at the moment, Paul had been happy to oblige. Until just one word from Roisin and the anger had completely dissipated. If he hadn't been sure about the imprint before, that would definitely have sold him. No one had been able to calm him down like that.

Paul glanced around the room, wondering just how Mae had thrown this together without Roisin knowing. He had to admit that the girl had impressive party skills.

Roisin then took off through the crowd towards the kitchen and Paul started to follow her when a strong hand landed on his arm, stopping him. He looked over, frowning at Embry.

"Hey, man! You made it! Was wondering where you and Roisin were," he shouted, a cup in his hand.

"We were on a date. Didn't know this was going on," Paul said looking around again. He noticed a few more unfamiliar faces than the last party.

Where did Mae even find these people?

"What? Seriously?" Embry asked. Paul looked back at him, seeing the confusion on his face. "But like… Mae and Roisin are best friends and all."

"They're fighting at the moment. And apparently this is Mae's way of getting back at Ro," he replied.

"Damn, she is spiteful," Embry replied, chuckling. "Though, guess that makes sense. She was a bit secretive when she called and invited us."

"Have you seen her lately? Where is she?" Paul asked.

Embry shrugged as he took a drink and Quil and Jacob walked up to the two wolves.

"She's here somewhere," Embry said. "Maybe the kitchen?"

"I need to find Ro," Paul said, looking around the party again.

"I would let them hash that out themselves," Quil said with a chuckle. "Mae said their fights can get epic."

Paul looked at him, frowning. Since when was Quil so chummy with Mae? Or well, more like since when had she started returning his texts?

"I'll go with you," Jacob said, a stern look on his face.

Paul rolled his eyes. He did not want Jacob hanging around, but it looked like he had no choice. So he sighed and started through the crowd towards the kitchen, Jacob with him as he scanned the various faces, finding more than a few of his old classmates.

"Find any more evidence since you got here?" Paul asked snidely. Jacob frowned at him, but kept looking around.

"Still trying to figure out who's making all those signs," he replied. "I think Mae is behind it."

Paul didn't respond. He was happy Jacob had moved on from Roisin, but at the same time, even if he was still undecided on Mae, he didn't think she would resort to vandalizing Forks and La Push. It didn't seem like something she would do from what little he had picked up on her so far. He couldn't picture her getting her hands dirty.

"And why do you think that?" he asked, humoring him.

"Just a feeling," Jacob replied, which didn't surprise Paul. All he had were "feelings" and hunches. "There's something weird going on and I think it's tied to them."

"Whatever," Paul said as they walked into the kitchen, seeing it full of people, but no Roisin. He sighed and started towards the doors that led to the back verandah that were thrown open.

"I'm serious. They move to town. These weird signs start showing up all over the place in Forks and La Push. These parties. And I know you've noticed the strange weather," Jacob continued. Paul stopped and turned to him.

"Okay, the graffiti, yea, maybe that could be Mae, though I doubt it. You have met her, right? She's a fucking princess, not a tagger. But you honestly think they can control the weather?" he asked, not bothering to hide the incredulous edge to his voice.

"Well… okay… but it _is_ weird," Jacob said. Paul rolled his eyes and turned, continuing through the large kitchen.

"You're grasping straws, Black," he said.

"You honestly don't feel anything? There's something strange in the air," Jacob pushed.

"No, I don't feel anything. It's all in your head," he said. Though at the back of his mind, he realized there was a bit of truth in what Jacob was saying.

Things had felt a bit odd lately, but it was just his imprint, right?

Paul shook his head. He wasn't about to buy into Jacob's delusion. He pushed through the crowd and they stepped out onto the verandah. Looking around, he finally found Mae holding court on some chaise lounges, surrounded by a decent-sized crowd. At the same time, he noticed Roisin storming up to her.

Electricity crackled in the air around her. Eyes widening slightly, he pushed the feeling aside. He needed to get to Roisin before she did something she regretted. And at the moment, he wasn't sure what she would do.

****

All Roisin could see was red as she strode up to the group surrounding Mae. It was a mixture of fae and mortals, though just as she was walking up, she saw a fae start to hold out a cup to Rosemary, the golden liquid shimmering on her face. Roisin's eyes widened as she ran up, knocking the cup out of her hand. It flew through the air and then landed on the patio, spilling its contents everywhere.

"Hey!" Rosemary shouted, glaring at her, though Roisin was now seething as she turned to the fae.

"Get. Out," she said, her voice low and her power barely restrained.

The fae shot up and backed away, his fear clear on his face as he saw the flames dancing in her eyes, felt the power pulsing off her. He then turned and disappeared into the woods. Roisin looked around, meeting the eyes of every other fae there. They all quietly turned and left. While normally Roisin didn't like it, she was grateful most everyone outside was drunk or distracted and didn't seem to notice anything strange going on.

She then turned back to Mae, her eyes narrowing. Mae didn't back down, instead rising gracefully to her feet.

"Sorry, but I don't remember inviting you," she said.

"I live here. And I said no more parties," Roisin said. "And fucking hell, you _know_ what he was about to give her."

"So? Thought you wanted me to _make_ more friends? That's all I was doing," Mae replied, a harsh edge to her voice.

"No. We agreed. Not like that," Roisin said, trying to keep herself in check. There were too many mortals around.

"Like you wouldn't do the same with your _dear_ Paul," Mae replied.

"No, I wouldn't," Roisin said, unsure where this hatred of Paul was coming from. "And definitely not without his knowledge."

Mae snorted, rolling her eyes.

"What is going on, Mae?" Roisin asked, her anger slowly starting to abate as her hurt and worry took over. "Why are you doing this?"

"Could ask you the same thing?" Mae shot back. Roisin frowned. "Why are you pushing me away?"

"I'm not pushing you away," Roisin said.

"Maybe not intentionally, but you are," Mae snapped, taking a step closer to her, almost as though she was emboldened by the fact that Roisin wouldn't try anything in front of everyone. Not something she couldn't explain away. "Our friendship always came first, but now… now you've got _Paul_. And don't think I don't know that you and Sean have your secrets."

Roisin's eyes widened slightly. So Mae had caught on. Shit. She glanced around, seeing Paul and Jacob walking towards her and the fact that everyone outside was now watching the exchange. This was not the time nor the place to get into this.

"Look, if we could just go inside - send everyone home - we can talk about this. I'll tell you everything," Roisin begged. Mae smirked at her.

"No," she said. "I'm having fun."

"Mae-"

"I'm sick and tired of always doing what you want! What you say!" Mae exploded. "It's always, 'Mae don't do this.' Or 'Mae don't do that.' We ALWAYS do what you want!"

"For good reason. I'm trying to keep us safe," Roisin replied, trying to keep calm and lowering her voice so others wouldn't hear. Namely Paul. "You _know_ this."

Mae laughed harshly and held her arms out.

"Look around, Ro! If they wanted you, they would have come by now! You're being paranoid!" Mae shouted. Roisin winced. That was definitely something she didn't want Paul to hear. " _No one_ is coming for you!"

Roisin didn't reply, her thoughts going back to her memories. She knew she should tell Mae the truth. Only then would she understand just how much danger they could be in. That someone _would_ come for her, if they weren't already looking - and she was pretty sure they were looking for her. But she couldn't right now. Not in front of everyone.

"Mae, if we could just go inside-"

"Fucking, stop it, Ro! I don't have to listen to you anymore! Isn't this what you wanted?! For me to be _independent_? Well, I am now. I don't need you! So you can go off and fuck your loser boyfriend. I'm staying right here and enjoying _my_ party with _my_ friends," she said, plopping back down.

Roisin took in a sharp breath, her anger spiking when Mae mentioned Paul. First of all, he had nothing to do with this - not to mention she wasn't even sure if he was her boyfriend - but there was no reason to drag him into one of their spats or insult him. Mae was baiting her and Roisin was trying so hard not to take it.

"He is not a loser," Roisin said, her voice low as an unexplained need to defend him came over her. She was trying, but dammit, her control was starting to slip. Mae just rolled her eyes and chuckled.

"Yea, okay. You believe that," she replied harshly.

Without thinking, Roisin started to lunge for her, but strong arms came around her, pulling her back.

"Easy there, killer," Paul said as Roisin struggled to get out of his grip. Wow, he was really strong. She was stronger, but she knew that she couldn't use her full strength on him. That would raise too many questions. But it was hard.

Mae just raised an eyebrow at her, her smirk growing.

"Maybe you should ask him just what likes to do in his free time, Ro," Mae said lightly, her blue eyes settling on him. "He's got _quite_ the reputation in La Push. What was it I heard… ah yes. He likes to fuck anything with two legs and tits. Doesn't that make you feel _oh so special_? You're just somewhere to stick it to him, Ro."

"Shut up, Mae!" Roisin shouted, still trying to break free from Paul's arms as her fury started to take over. She heard Paul hiss in pain and knew she was getting overheated, but in the moment, she didn't really care. "I'm going to fucking kick your ass!"

"Okay, this is over," Paul said, starting to haul her off.

"Let me go!" Roisin shouted, struggling a bit harder. Okay, he was a lot stronger than she had thought. "I need to beat some fucking sense into her!"

"Yea, that's not happening. You need to cool off," Paul replied as he easily lifted her off her feet and continued walking to the house.

Roisin continued struggling against his vice-like arms, kicking and shouting in frustration before she looked back over towards Mae, seeing her lift a glass to her with a smug grin. She then saw Jacob watching them, an odd look on his face before he looked over at Mae.

"I do not need to cool off," Roisin shouted as he stepped into the house and started through the crowd towards her bedroom, still trying to fight against his grip. For whatever reason, no one seemed to notice them or care.

"You do. Calm down," he ordered.

In an instant, Roisin felt some of her anger start to fade away. She quit struggling, making it easier for him to carry her. Paul finally reached her door and opened it, walking in. He shut the door behind them as he continued over and put her down next to her bed. She could still hear the music from the living room, though it was muted. Paul walked over, turning on the lamp on her nightstand. He then walked over and pulled the curtains shut so that they would have more privacy.

Finally, he turned to face her, folding his arms across his chest. His expression was stern, but there was a gentleness in his eyes.

"Okay… want to tell me what that was about?" he asked.

Roisin took a deep breath. Shit. Where to start?

****

Paul watched as Roisin looked at the floor, fidgeting under his gaze. Like she didn't want to say anything. And really, he didn't want to push her, but he had heard the entire exchange. He had panicked slightly when he heard Mae bring up his past. But that was quickly pushed aside as he latched on to the other part of what Mae had said.

That someone could be looking for them. Meaning Roisin _was_ in danger. Or could be - he wasn't completely sure since it sounded like Mae didn't think it was a big issue, but it was obvious that Roisin did. The constant moving now made sense. And he needed to know what was going on so he could better protect her. Even if it was an unfounded fear.

"Whatever it is, it's okay. But I need to know who's looking for you. So I can keep you safe," he said, keeping his voice gentle.

Roisin looked over at him, her eyes wide in surprise for a moment, but then she looked away, the surprise giving way to defeat.

"I appreciate it, but you can't," she said, her voice soft. "It's something I have to deal with."

"Okay, but let me help you," he said, taking a step towards her. He wanted to rush over and take her in his arms, but something stopped him. Roisin wrapped her arms around her and shook her head.

"Trust me. It's better that you don't get involved. Sean and I have it under control," she replied with a wince. She then looked up and met his eyes. "What was Mae talking about?"

It was Paul's turn to look away from her. He had hoped he wouldn't have to get into that right now. But it was clear she didn't want to talk about her issues. However, maybe if he was open about his, she might open up about hers.

He walked over and sat down on the edge of the bed, his eyes still fixed on the floor. He then looked up at her.

"I wasn't always a good person," he started. Jared would probably kick his ass for that statement. "Or well… I was… a bit lost for awhile."

Roisin walked over and sat next to him, her leg pressing against his. Her nearness helped, but he found he couldn't look at her while he talked about this.

"After my mom died, I was just… angry all the time. I took it out on my dad - even though it wasn't his fault. It wasn't anyone's fault. But didn't stop me from taking it out on pretty much everyone," he said. "I'm not trying to excuse it, but yea, that started it."

Roisin reached out and took his hand, holding onto it tightly. He felt calm spreading through him, but still couldn't look at her.

"I fell into the wrong crowd. And yea, slacked off. Got into a lot of fights. Lots of trouble. I was always angry. And… yea… I got around. Got a reputation," he said, wincing slightly. "It's honestly a miracle that I graduated high school or didn't end up in jail. But, um, my junior year… Sam approached me. Talked to me. Helped me. He and Jared, really." He took a deep breath and slowly let it out. "I'm not proud of how I was. But I don't want to shy away from my past. I've changed. I've grown from that. I'm not like that anymore. I want to… do better. Try and make something of myself."

He looked over at her, not sure what he was expecting to see. He only saw understanding there. The imprint was so strong, he swore he could feel it pulsing between them.

"And I don't think about you. Not by a long shot," he added. "You mean… far more to me than that."

"I believe you," she said, almost as though she could read his mind. Knew that he was worried that she would think he was the same person as he was. "You said it yourself… people change. I don't think you're that guy anymore."

"I still struggle with it, though. The anger, that is. Sometimes it still gets the best of me," he admitted. "I would never, ever hurt you. But sometimes I do hurt people."

Roisin smiled wanly.

"You aren't the only one. As you saw tonight, I sometimes struggle with my anger as well. Sometimes people get hurt," she said, looking away. "And I don't worry about you hurting me. You can't."

He thought her word choice was odd - as well as the part about her hurting someone, he didn't think that was even possible - but that was at the back of his mind at the moment. She was accepting him. Most of him, anyway. She still didn't know about his wolf side, but he didn't want to push it. She was taking this rather well and he didn't want to tempt fate.

He pulled his hand from hers and wrapped his arm around her, pulling her closer. He wanted to ask her to open up more. To tell him what it was from her past that was haunting her. But at the same time, he wanted her to tell him because she wanted to. And he could tell that right now she didn't want to. He wasn't sure if it was a trust issue or if it was fear, but he would be patient for her.

Roisin leaned her head on his shoulder, neither of them speaking for a few moments. Paul reached up and caressed her cheek, then pushed a bit of her hair behind her ear. Roisin looked up, meeting his eyes.

"Aren't we the pair," she said with a small smile. Paul nearly started, finding it far too close to what she had said to him in the dream.

"You feel calmer?" he asked. She nodded.

"But definitely think I should wait until tomorrow to talk to Mae again," she said, a frown coming over her face as she looked towards the door to her room.

"Yea, I think that's a good idea," he replied with a chuckle.

Roisin looked up at him, now smiling.

"Well, I did say we could watch a movie. Can't use the theater room, which would be better, but here is good enough," she said. Paul's eyes widened slightly. They had a fucking theater room?

Roisin laughed softly as she kissed his cheek and then stood, walking over to the entertainment center in the corner of the room. Paul had missed it the last time he was in here, granted he had been a bit preoccupied with getting both of their clothes off. He felt his face flush. While he wouldn't mind a bit of that again, he was in better control of himself tonight.

"What are you in the mood for?" she asked, now kneeling on the floor and looking over at him. He looked over at the collection of DVDs.

"How about… comedy? Think we could both use a bit of a laugh right now," he said, pushing up from the bed and walking over to kneel next to her, going over the titles. "Or maybe action… could help to watch things explode."

Roisin chuckled as she turned back to the collection, gliding her finger down the line. She then stopped and pulled one out, holding it up.

"How about a casino heist? Got a little bit of both," she said. Paul grinned.

"Sounds good," he said, standing.

While Roisin got the DVD set up, he walked back over to the bed, pulling his jacket off and then kicking off his shoes. He then got settled, not quite believing that just outside the door there was a raging party. Roisin then walked back over, the remote in her hand. She pulled off her own jacket and kicked off her shoes, then settled next to him, her head on his shoulder and started the movie.

"Shit," she said suddenly, sitting up. Paul looked over at her, an eyebrow raised. "Snacks." He chuckled and pulled her back against him.

"I'm good," he said, kissing the side of her head. She smiled.

"Okay."

****

Roisin was a bit groggy when she came to. She noticed the music was gone, the lamp off, and figured the party had finally ended - whether by Mae or Sean. She had a feeling he was going to be pissed when he found out what happened tonight and wasn't eager to face that. He would likely be angry that she hadn't stopped the party.

Turning her head, she saw Paul completely passed out, his arms around her. Ah, that was why she felt nice and toasty.

For a moment, she just watched him, in awe of how peaceful and beautiful he looked. She reached out and pushed back a bit of hair that had fallen over his forehead. He stirred slightly, but didn't wake up. A small smile came over her face.

Yea, she knew about his past now, but she didn't care. The Paul she saw before her was kind and gentle, even if sometimes his temper got away from him. He was working hard towards a future that he hadn't quite figured out yet, but that didn't bother her. She hadn't figured hers out either.

But one thought had solidified in her mind that night. She wanted to be with Paul. For as long as she could. Realistically, she knew this wasn't possible. At some point, they would have to leave Forks. And she didn't think it was fair to drag him into her problems. Not when she couldn't even fully tell him the truth. By the goddesses, she wanted to tell him everything tonight. But she couldn't. It would put him in danger. Just being near her put him in danger.

And yet, she couldn't push him away. And didn't want to fight whatever this was between them. What it could be. Roisin decided not to think about it right now. She would just enjoy it for the time being.

Paul stirred and then blinked open his eyes. As soon as he saw her, he smiled lazily.

"What time is it?" he asked, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. Roisin looked over at the clock on her nightstand.

"It's about 3 am," she said. She turned back to him. "Do you need to get home?"

She seriously hoped he didn't have to. She wanted him to stay.

"Maybe," he said, starting to get off the bed. Roisin reached out to him, putting her hand on his chest. He looked down at it and then over at her.

"Stay," she said.

He didn't respond at first. He looked towards the door and then back at her. She could see that he didn't want to leave either, but he was unsure.

"What about your uncle?" he asked.

"I can take care of him," she said automatically. "It'll be fine." He relaxed at that. "But you can't be comfortable like that." She looked down, seeing he was fully clothed. As she met his eyes, she suddenly realized how that sounded, seeing his raised eyebrows and a playful smile on his face.

"I mean, you can come out with it if you wanted to get me out of my clothes," he replied.

Roisin rolled her eyes and laughed as she got out of bed, walking over to her dresser where she kept her pajamas.

"I meant, if you want to get more comfortable, you could. I'm changing into my pjs," she said, casting a playful look over her shoulder before she walked into her bathroom and changed.

When she emerged in a matching pajama short set of soft gray jersey, Paul was already under the comforter, his shirt gone. She stopped, her eyebrows rising as a spike of excitement coursed through her.

"Oh my god. It's like you have one thing on your brain," he said, pulling the comforter back to reveal that he was still in his boxers. Roisin chuckled and walked over, cuddling up next to him.

"As I recall, I'm not the only one that had _that_ on the brain the night we met," she said, looking up at him. Paul just shook his head, pulling her closer to him.

Once they were both settled, Roisin found she couldn't sleep, acutely aware of how close their bodies were. It wasn't necessarily that she wanted to sleep with him right now, but this was pretty intimate. And while today was technically only their third date, she felt like they were closer with everything that had happened. That no matter what, she could trust him.

"So, Ro… I wanted to ask you something," Paul said. She glanced up at him, finding he wasn't look at her.

"What is it?" she asked, hoping it wasn't something she couldn't answer.

"So… Mae called me your boyfriend tonight…"

Roisin's eyes widened slightly. That was not what she was expecting.

"Yea?" she asked. He looked down at her. Even in the dark, she could clearly see the hesitation in them.

"I was wondering… if you thought maybe… I know it hasn't been that long, but… do you think of me as your boyfriend?" he asked, fidgeting slightly. Roisin chuckled as she sat up slightly.

"Paul… are you asking if you can be my boyfriend?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at her. He met her gaze and nodded, a smile appearing.

"Yea, I am," he said.

Roisin leaned forward and kissed him lightly on the lips.

"Then my answer is yes," she whispered.

Paul grinned and pulled her closer, this kiss deeper than the previous one. She didn't intend to let it go further, but it was really hard. Normally, she wouldn't have any qualms about it. But there was something different about Paul. Something she couldn't quite put her finger on.

Despite everything saying that this relationship was impossible - at the very least it would have an expiration date - she wanted it to work. And she wanted to take it slow. Let it build up.

So with great reluctance, she finally pulled away and settled her head on his chest.

"Night, Paul," she whispered.

"Night, Ro."

She then smiled to herself as she closed her eyes and found herself drifting off to the sound of his beating heart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gotta love how fast that imprint pushes things. ^_^ I love writing the sweet moments with Paul and Ro. But yea, we're going to get into a huge onslaught of info hitting everyone in a bit (seriously, it's making my head spin and I'm writing it). The action is about to pick up (because I can't write a story without drama) and truths will come out.
> 
> Oh, and something I meant to mention with the last post – this is why you shouldn't drink and post, folks – I went back and did some editing and re-posted a few chapters. You don't really need to go back and reread all of them. I mostly just took out that other fae knew who Roisin really is (being the Summer Court princess/royal fae) because I realized that made no sense if they're supposed to be in hiding. Though I did rewrite some of the last chapter and ended up adding 100-200 words to it, so up to you if you want to reread it.
> 
> But yea, very quickly realizing this is the most complicated story I've attempted. Just with all the subplots/secrets/sheer amount of characters. And all the stuff that I've changed as I was writing, so having to remember to go back and change things in earlier chapters (mostly ones that I haven't posted yet). But I just finished Chapter 22, so from there out I'm going to write in chronological order (or at least try to stick to that) so that hopefully I won't trip myself up. But if you come across inconsistencies, let me know and I APOLOGIVE PROFUSELY! I'm not sure why this is the one story I'm running into this issue with since I have so much of it written and have been editing every day. Usually I'm better at this…
> 
> Anyway…
> 
> Thanks so much for reading and following!


	15. When the Sun Hits

Paul woke up but didn't open his eyes. He could feel Roisin in his arms, so for the moment, he just pulled her closer, reveling in the fact that he was finally getting to live out one of his dreams of her. But then he opened his eyes and realized it was daylight. He had a vague thought that perhaps he should have messaged his dad last night, but he was often gone all night with patrols. And well, he wasn't sure he was ready to have this conversation with him just yet. He still hadn't told him about the imprint.

But more pressing than that, he was going to have to face her uncle. Shit.

He looked down, seeing Roisin still peacefully asleep. The house was quiet. So for the time being, he was content to stay where he was. Granted, that only lasted so long before he needed to get up and use the bathroom. As gently as he could, he pulled his arms from around Roisin and got up, making his way across the large room.

When he came back, Roisin was sitting up in the bed, stretching. She then looked over and smiled at him.

"Morning," she said.

"Morning," he replied, coming to a stop.

Roisin chuckled and got out of bed, walking over to him and then wrapping her arms around his neck and pecking him on the lips.

"I'm starving. Which I'm pretty sure that means you are insanely starving," she said, her eyes glinting with amusement. He just nodded.

Roisin removed her arms, which he immediately missed, and walked over, picking up his jeans and tossing them towards him.

"Not that I mind, but might need something a bit more than that," she replied, an eyebrow cocked.

He caught the jeans easily, chuckling. She had a point. He did not want to be caught in his underpants in front of her uncle - especially considering how he acted when he had picked her up for their date.

He quickly dressed and then Roisin took his hand and they walked out into the living room. Paul came to a stop. You couldn't tell that there had been a party there at all.

"Guess Mae got help cleaning up," Roisin said. He looked down at her, finding a confused look on her face.

She then shook her head and kept walking, leading him to the kitchen. When they walked in, he stopped immediately, seeing Sean at the stove. This was not good.

Roisin yanked him forward to the stools at the island that was covered in various plates of cut fruit and other food, and sat at one. She looked at him expectantly and he sat next to her, but his eyes were now fixed on Sean's back. The older man then turned around, his eyebrows raised.

"Mae?" Roisin asked.

"Still asleep," he said, turning back to whatever he was cooking on the stove.

"When did you get back?" Roisin asked.

"Not early enough," came the rueful response. "Any light you can shine on last night?"

Paul glanced at Roisin, waiting for her response. Rather than saying anything, she started filling a plate in front of her with food. He did the same, not wanting to risk his stomach growling loudly. So far, things were good and he didn't want to draw attention to himself.

"We came home early," she finally said after chewing up and swallowing a bit of melon. "I told her to cancel it and she said she would. But then she didn't."

"I gathered. She must have waited until I left. Should have known something was up when she ushered me out," Sean said, turning around with a frying pan in hand. "Eggs?"

The question was directed to Paul, which shocked him a bit. Sean definitely was different than last night. Maybe because he thought the party was a bigger problem than him staying over. But then he remembered how he had smiled just before they left. Maybe he wasn't completely against him dating Roisin. He nodded and Sean dished out some onto his plate and then put some on Roisin's. He then turned and put the pan back on the stove, turning it off. Paul started eating but kept his eyes on Sean as he turned back around and leaned on the island.

He fixed his dark eyes on Roisin, who put her fork down.

"You talk to her?" she asked.

For a moment, his eyes seemed to darken as his expression grew sterner.

"Eat and we'll discuss it later," he said, turning to walk to a cabinet. He then grabbed another plate and then walked over starting to fill it up.

Paul still felt the tension in the air, but he wasn't sure if it was because of his presence or the party. The three of them ate in uncomfortable silence. Roisin finished first and hopped off her stool.

"I'm going to take a shower. Be back," she said after kissing him on the cheek. She then walked out of the kitchen before he could protest.

He then looked back at Sean, worried he was about to get a lecture.

"Nothing happened," he said before Sean could say anything.

The older man appeared slightly amused, which was not the reaction he was expecting. He had just spent the night with his niece. In her bedroom. Unsupervised. He was expecting him to be angry. That was the normal response.

"Even if something did, it's none of my business," Sean replied easily.

Well, that was different. He must have made a disbelieving expression because Sean chuckled.

"Ro is old enough. And she has a good head on her shoulders… most of the time," he said, grabbing her plate and walking it over to the sink. "I may be her guardian, but I trust her… again… most of the time."

Paul shook his head and looked down at his plate and then back up at Sean, who was now leaning on the island again.

"Heard you got her to calm down last night," he said. Paul's eyebrows rose.

"Pretty much had to drag her away, but yea, she calmed down," Paul said. Sean nodded slowly.

"Not many people can do that," he replied.

"You mean that happens often?" Paul asked. Even though Roisin had pretty much told him that last night, he still didn't completely believe her. Sean laughed softly and nodded.

"It's not all the time. And most of the time she can get herself under control. But sometimes her temper gets the best of her. When it gets bad, well," he stopped speaking and just shrugged. "If you could get her out of a state, then you have my respect."

Paul was a bit gobsmacked. This was not the reaction he was expecting at all.

"We're… not a normal family," Sean said.

"I gathered that," Paul admitted. He glanced through the archway towards Roisin's room and then back at him. If he was going to get answers, it might be better to ask Sean. "Last night during their argument… some things were said… is Roisin in trouble? Is someone looking for her?"

Sean didn't react. Managed to keep his expression the same. But his eyes flicked over towards the archway before landing on Paul again.

"What did she tell you?" he asked.

"That it was something you and her were dealing with and I shouldn't get involved," Paul replied. "Mae seemed to think it was nothing, but Ro… All I want is for her to be safe. And if I can help-"

"We do have it under control," Sean said, cutting him off. "Trust me. There's nothing you can do. And well, Mae doesn't know everything. But… again… nothing you should get messed up in."

Paul frowned. This was not the answer he wanted. And it confirmed to him that Roisin was in danger. They moved a lot. The thought then occurred to him that they may move away. That couldn't happen. Or well, it could. But he didn't want to be separated from her. Couldn't. He just wasn't sure how to articulate that to Sean at the moment without telling him about the imprint.

"I know that Ro and I… we just started dating, but… I care about her. And her safety. A lot. And I want to help," he said, pleading with him.

Sean studied him a few moments, his expression not changing. It made him think of vampires for a moment. How they were able to control their facial expressions so easily.

"It's up to Ro," Sean finally said, pushing off the island. "She'll tell you what she wants you to know."

He then walked out of the kitchen, leaving Paul alone and without any answers at all. Just what the hell were they running from?

****

Sometime later, Sean sat on the couch while Roisin paced around the living room. Paul had just left to go home. She had left him to hopefully bond a little with Sean, but it seemed as though he hadn't been swayed by her words last night. That she and Sean had her issues under control and there was no reason for him to get involved.

Stupid, loudmouthed Mae. She hadn't wanted him to know about any of this. Now he was going to be worried and she couldn't tell him anything about the truth.

"I don't think he's going to stop asking," Sean said, sitting up and leaning on his knees as he watched Roisin pace. "Gotta come up with something, Ro."

"I know," she replied, her brow furrowed. "I need him to believe that it's nothing…"

"Or you can break things off with him," Sean suggested.

Roisin came to a stop, her eyes wide as she looked over at him and her heart starting to race slightly at the suggestion. No. She couldn't do that. Didn't want to do that. She had just agreed to be his girlfriend last night.

"Ro… are you okay?" Sean asked, standing up. He was then right in front of her, peering down into her face. "I know you like him, but he's mortal. It was going to happen sooner or later."

"I know," she said, looking away from him. "Just… not yet, okay?"

She didn't hear a response, but looked over at him, seeing that he was studying her closely.

"What is it with this one?" he asked softly.

"I honestly don't know," Roisin replied.

Before she could say more, her phone began ringing. Grateful for the distraction, she walked over and picked it up from the table, seeing that it was Trey. That was a bit odd. Usually when they all hung out, Tara or Megan called. And she was certain they were all going surfing that morning. Maybe they wanted her to come out to the beach. She wouldn't mind that right now to be honest. Anything to get out of the house.

"Hey, Trey," she said, glancing over at Sean, whose expression read that this conversation was not over.

"Ro… I… oh my god," he said, sounding distressed.

"What's wrong?" Roisin asked quickly, her heart sinking slightly.

"There's been an accident… we were trying to catch some of the swells this morning at First Beach… and, and…" he stopped talking, though Roisin could hear him trying to breathe. Oh goddess. This was bad. "I don't know what happened…"

"Trey, where are you? I'm coming right now," she said, already moving towards her room to get her bag and keys.

"Forks Hospital. Meg's here, but Tara-" he cut off again, crying. Roisin came to a stop, her eyes wide. "They can't find her…"

Immediately tears pricked at her eyes. Even though they hadn't been there all that long, she had developed a closeness with Tara, Megan and Trey. And now Tara could be gone. She looked over, seeing that Mae had just come down the stairs. Though rather than her haughty look from the night before, she appeared concerned. She must have heard Roisin's side of the conversation.

"Okay. I, I'm on my way. I'll be there soon," Roisin said, turning and continuing on into her room.

****

She drove like a maniac to the hospital, not wanting to waste any time. She knew surfing could be dangerous, but it didn't seem like them at all to go out if the conditions were bad. But maybe it was just some freak thing.

Roisin did her best not to think that a fae had anything to do with this. But it was hard considering the sheer amount of fae that had been hanging around lately. She knew it was a bad idea.

Arriving at the hospital, she got out of the car and dashed inside. She stopped for a moment to look around before heading down a hallway, remembering the room number that Trey had texted her. When she got there, she stopped before going in, seeing an older couple down the hall. Tara's parents. They were holding each other as they spoke with the police chief, tearstained faces nodding.

"We're going to do our best," the chief said. He then glanced down the hallway, seeing Roisin.

Not wanting to bring anymore attention to herself, she turned, knocking on the opened door to the room. Megan was lying in a hospital bed, a bit beaten up but otherwise okay. Trey sat in a chair next to her, holding her hand. Both of them looked like they had been crying.

"Oh, Ro…" Meg said, her face crumbling. Roisin quickly made her way over to the bed, hugging her.

"It's good to see that you're not hurt too badly," she said, her voice thick as she let go. Megan nodded and looked over at Trey, who was still in his wetsuit. Roisin pulled up a chair and sat down. "What happened?"

"I'm… not sure," Megan said, looking back over at her, eyes wide. "We were all out and the waves were good. Big, but not too big. It must have been a rip current…"

Roisin frowned slightly, not understanding.

"It's a strong current that can pull you far out into the ocean," Trey explained. Roisin nodded.

"So… that's what happened? It pulled you out?" she asked. Megan frowned, glancing at Trey nervously. He nodded to her.

"It wasn't like that at all, but that's what the police think," Megan said. "Or, I don't know. Something hit my head so the details are fuzzy, but… I swear I felt something grab my ankle and pull me under."

Roisin's eyebrows rose as she felt her heart stop for a moment.

"First, Meg went under. And then Tara. I tried to get both of them, but… they were gone too fast, and…I couldn't see..." Trey stopped speaking as he dropped his face into his hands, his shoulders shaking.

"You did the best you could," Megan said, reaching over to rub his shoulder.

Roisin looked down at her hands, hearing Megan murmur something to Trey about it not being his fault. And it wasn't. If he was going against two fae or even just one fae - which Roisin was just about convinced that's what happened - he was lucky that he got out and unscathed. That he managed to somehow get Meg away. And she knew, with a sinking feeling in her stomach, that they would probably never find Tara again. If she survived the abduction, she was probably whisked away to some hidden place that the mortal police would never find because there wouldn't be a trail.

If this was anyone's fault, it was hers. She knew something was happening in Forks and La Push - something fae. And she had done nothing to find out who was behind it. Now they were taking people. Her friends. This was her fault.

But she wasn't going to let it happen again.

****

"You stayed over?" Jared asked, grinning. "And nothing happened?"

"There was a party going on," Paul said with a shrug, though it only caused Jared to laugh.

"Right, like that was stopping you last time," he replied. Paul just rolled his eyes and leaned back on the couch. "But her uncle was cool with it?"

"Yea, it was… not what I was expecting," he said. "Thought he would rip my head off or something."

"You seriously lucked out," Jared replied. Paul sighed, glancing over at his best friend. "Uh-oh. I know that look."

"They're running from something or someone," he said, sitting up on the sofa. "Mae didn't think it was a big deal, but Ro… she seemed legit frightened. But she and her uncle, they won't tell me what it is. Said that it's best I not get involved. That there's nothing I can do."

"Maybe it's time to come clean about everything. That way they'll know there probably _is_ something you can do to protect her," Jared said, pushing up from the couch and heading to the kitchen. "She is your girlfriend now."

"I know," Paul said, frowning. He had thought it over on the drive back to La Push and had come to the same conclusion. The only way Roisin would come clean to him is if he came fully clean himself.

But how to do it?

"How did you tell Kim?" he asked, looking over as Jared returned with a can of soda.

"Just… took her outside. Told her. And then showed her," he said as he plopped down in the recliner that Paul's dad always used. "She freaked out at first, but she knew the stories."

"Yea, Ro doesn't," Paul replied.

"Well… tell her the stories first. Then tell her what you do. Then do it. She seems to be made of strong stuff. I doubt she'll scream for too long," Jared said casually.

"Hopefully," Paul replied.

"Seriously, you need to tell her. And sooner would be better," Jared pushed.

"I know," Paul groaned as he rubbed his face. Before he could lament further, there was a knock at the door.

Sighing, he pushed up off the couch and walked over. When he answered, he found a stone-faced Sam and Jacob on his doorstep. Immediately, he knew this couldn't be good news.

"What's going on?" he asked, letting them in. Sam glanced over, seeing Jared.

"We need to get to First Beach. There's been an accident," he said. "Some students from Forks were out surfing and got caught in a rip current. One's in the hospital, but they haven't found the other."

"Wait, so we're being pulled in for normal search and rescue now?" Jared asked, standing up. "That's not our job."

Sam looked over at Jacob and then sighed, shaking his head.

"Charlie called and asked us to go out. Rip current is what he told the parents and tried to get the kids to believe, but he knew immediately that wasn't it from what they told him. He said it looked like something that was 'need to know'," Sam said. Paul's eyes widened. "We think it's connected to all the graffiti, and that it's not human."

"Another leech?" Jared asked.

"I don't know, but we need to go out and check. See if we can pick up anything. Come on," he said, turning to leave. Jacob shot Paul a smug look before following him.

"Shit. I thought the graffiti was just… harmless whatever. You seriously think that this is all connected?" Jared asked. Paul just shrugged.

"I don't know, but… guess we're going to find out…"

****

Roisin was back pacing in the living room after her visit to the hospital. She had just filled in Sean with everything she heard there. They needed to figure out who was doing this and fast. Before they tried to take someone else.

Fuck, why had she not looked into the graffiti?

"Who do you think it could be?" she asked, shooting a look at Sean.

"I'm not sure. Honestly, it could be just about anyone," he said.

"Sounds like Shadow Court."

Both Roisin and Sean looked over, seeing Mae walk into the living room. She came to a stop, seeming hesitant - as though she wasn't sure they would want her there.

"That's what they do. Come over, take humans, then go back and play with them," she continued, glancing at Sean. "And they are a bit on the dramatic side."

"True, but… why here?" he asked. Mae seemed to relax a bit, walking further into the room and coming to sit on the sofa next to Sean.

"Why does any of Cathal's people do what they do?" Mae replied.

"It could just as well be a solitary," Roisin said, not really wanting to think that this could be Shadow fae. That would mean there was a deeper reason behind it and she really didn't want to go down that road. "There were a lot in the area last night. Have been a lot in the area lately."

Mae winced, a guilty expression coming over her face as she turned away, not meeting Roisin's eyes. While Roisin had wanted to yell at her earlier, she found her anger was gone. She knew Mae didn't want to intentionally hurt anyone. The parties were supposed to be fun. And to get back at Roisin.

"Look, I told them all to stay here and then leave. And not to hurt anyone," she said, turning to look at Roisin, her eyes wide. "After you went to your room, whoever was still around, I told them not to hurt anyone. I… If this is one of the fae I invited, I…"

She stopped speaking as tears welled up in her eyes. Roisin sighed.

"It's okay. There's no way you could have known. And this is my fault more than anything," she said. "I knew something was going on with the graffiti and I let myself get distracted rather than find out who was behind it."

She glanced over at Sean and then back at Mae.

"Whoever this is, we need to find out fast before they take anyone else," she said firmly. "We brought them here and now it's our responsibility to protect Forks and La Push."

"Where should we start?" Mae asked, wiping her cheeks and seemingly on board.

"Where it happened. First Beach."

****

"So, you're saying that it's not a vampire," Carlisle stated calmly. The entire family - save Bella and Renesmee - were gathered in the living room of the large house.

Jacob glanced around and then nodded.

"We couldn't find a scent," Jacob said. "But we did manage to find the girl's scent farther up the coast. Whatever it was that took her, it's… we couldn't track it. It just… disappeared somewhere in the woods."

Carlisle frowned and looked over at Edward, who was studying Jacob.

"You think the new people who moved into town have something to do with this," he said.

"There's something weird about them. About the people they've been inviting to their parties. They're hiding something," Jacob said.

"Someone's looking for them," Edward replied, clearly seeing the scene from last night play out in Jacob's mind. His eyes then widened. "One of yours imprinted on them."

"Which is why I wanted to bring you guys in. I can't trust Paul to stay open-minded about this and Sam trusts him. Will take whatever he says at face value," he replied. "And since Roisin's an imprint, we can't touch her."

"If it's her, you want us to take her down," Edward said grimly.

"Just what makes you think it's them?" Carlisle asked. "Do you have any evidence besides your hunch?"

"I… I don't have much. But I think if we work together on this, we can find something. I've been watching their house as much as I can, but I can't do it all the time," he said. "I've seen people coming and going… but none of them ever seem to have cars."

The Cullens were silent as they took in this news, glancing around at each other.

"And they showed up at the beach just as I was leaving," Jacob continued. "Looked like they were checking it out like we were."

"Do you think it's possible that they might be trying to find out who is behind this as well?" Carlisle suggested.

"That or returning to the scene of the crime," Jacob said dryly. "It's a thing, you know."

"I know, but I think we should keep all options on the table," Carlisle said. "We'll help, but they might not be involved." Jacob snorted.

"They know something," he said. "Even if they aren't involved, they know something about whoever is behind this - whether they are helping or not."

"I agree," Edward said. "So when do we start?"

"How about now?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As I've said, things are happening. And truths are about to come out. So over the next (several) chapters, hopefully everyone's questions will be answered.
> 
> Thanks for reading and following!


	16. Island in the Sun

Paul glanced around Sam and Emily's crowded living room, wondering why they hadn't started the meeting yet. Everyone was here and he wanted to get this over with so he could go over to Roisin's. She was taking the accident pretty hard, telling him she was at the hospital most of the weekend with Megan and Trey until her friend was released and then had spent time with Tara's parents at their house, doing whatever she could to make things easier for them.

It was all everyone was talking about. How the teens had gotten into a tragic surfing accident on Saturday morning. The police were still searching for the body, but he knew they'd never find it. If the wolves couldn't track her down, then the human police didn't stand a chance.

He couldn't stop thinking how weird it was. It wasn't a bloodsucker - they would smell that - but what else had the ability to breath underwater for as long as they obviously had to in order to grab the two girls? And then get away like it did. There was no discernable scent and the only way they had followed it as much as they had was because they had picked up the girl - Tara's - scent. But even that had bounced around in the woods before disappearing completely. Almost as though it had stepped through some portal or flew away. But that wasn't possible. Having no scent was possible.

Or was it?

"We can start," Sam said, getting everyone's attention. Paul looked up, noticing that Edward and Carlisle Cullen had arrived, now standing next to Jacob.

He should have known that Jacob would bring them in. And Paul supposed it wasn't a bad idea, considering the Cullens didn't need sleep. They moved fast and their ability to detect scents was almost as good as the wolves, in his opinion. Maybe this meant the amount of patrols he was about to do wouldn't go up exponentially. Though he was already thinking about taking up his own patrols around Roisin's house to make sure she was safe.

"We haven't been able to find another trail," Sam said. "Whatever did this hasn't been back, at least with the girl, but that doesn't mean they haven't or that they might not return. They still have a student from Forks and on the off chance she could still be alive, we're going to increase our patrols." There were a few groans from the younger pack members. "I know it's not easy, but we can't risk anyone else being taken."

"I suggest we start patrolling around the McLaren house," Jacob said.

Immediately, Paul felt his hackles start to rise as he narrowed his eyes at the other alpha. Once again, he didn't like the tone of his voice.

"Jacob seems to think that they might be connected and I agree that it's not a bad idea to keep an eye on them. Find out what that connection is," Carlisle said gently.

"Ro has nothing to do with this," Paul snapped, barely keeping his anger in check.

"Forgive me if I don't believe you," Jacob replied. "I was there. I heard everything too. Tell us, Paul. Did she come clean about who could be after her?"

There was a tense silence as Paul continued to stare him down. He could feel everyone looking at him. Waiting for his answer.

"No," he finally said, albeit reluctantly. Jacob looked almost pleased.

"See? She's hiding things," he replied, as though that was proof that she was involved.

"Have you told her about the imprint?" Carlisle asked, shooting a worried look between the two wolves. Paul shook his head.

"I'm… we're still getting to know each other," he said. "I'm planning on telling her soon."

"Maybe you should hold off," Edward interjected. "If she's involved… it might not be a good idea for her to know about the packs. Or us."

Paul growled at him, rising quickly to his feet. Roisin was his imprint. His responsibility to protect. She wasn't involved in this and if he wanted to tell her, that was his business. Not theirs.

"I'll tell her when I want to," he said.

"Relax, Paul," Sam ordered. Paul stopped growling, but he didn't lose his defensive posture. "Stand down."

Still glaring at Jacob and Edward, Paul slowly lowered himself back onto the sofa.

"She is your imprint… is there anything you can tell us that might help?" Carlisle asked, keeping his voice gentle. Every eye in the room was suddenly on him again as silence reigned.

He didn't want to tell them anything. It had taken a lot for Roisin to share what she had and he didn't want to betray that trust. He met Sam's eyes and his alpha knew he was struggling with it. He gave him a short nod, urging him to share what he knew.

"They move around a lot because someone is after them. She wouldn't tell me who, just that she and her uncle have it under control," he said. He frowned as he thought back to what she had told him that night. "She said… that I couldn't help her. That it was best I not get involved."

He wasn't sure why he hadn't thought of how she worded things until now. But looking at it after hearing about the disappearance, he was beginning to wonder if perhaps Roisin _was_ involved. He didn't think she was responsible - Tara had been her friend, after all - but whoever was after her, what if _they_ were? And whatever it was, it was something that Roisin thought he couldn't handle. Granted, she didn't know he was a wolf.

He felt now more than ever he needed to tell her what he was. Maybe then she would finally open up about what was going on. Once she realized that he could protect her.

"What about Alice? Has she seen anything?" Seth asked. Never before had Paul been grateful for Seth Clearwater as every eye was now directed back at the Cullens.

"Whoever or whatever it is, she can't see it," Edward said with a sigh. He then directed his gaze to Paul. "Do you think you could introduce me? Perhaps if I get close to them, I can read her mind and find out whatever it is she's keeping from you."

Paul narrowed his eyes at him, for some reason not wanting the Cullens to be anywhere near Roisin, even though rationally he knew they wouldn't hurt her.

"Are you sure that's a good idea? Like the rest of Forks, she thinks that you guys have moved away. It's a small town and I doubt that she hasn't at least heard of you," Sam said.

"True, but what if she didn't see me? As long as I'm nearby, I'll be able to hear her," Edward said.

"No. If Roisin wants us to know, she'll tell me," Paul said.

"Relax, no one is going to hurt your precious imprint," Jacob said, the acid thick in his voice. At least to Paul's ears.

Paul was back on his feet and lurching towards Jacob at that point, his body starting to shake as he descended on him. He didn't give a shit that he was an alpha. Roisin was his imprint and he would protect her.

"Paul," Sam said in warning, as he grabbed his arm and attempted to hold him back.

"That's right. She's my imprint. I will do anything and everything to protect her," Paul said. "Don't forget that, Black."

He then shook out of Sam's grasp and strode towards the door. He was done with this meeting. Sam could tell him his patrol assignment later, though he already decided he would run around Roisin's house that night to make sure she was safe. And that the stupid leeches didn't get anywhere near her.

"Hey, wait up."

Paul came to a stop, turning to see Jared trotting after him.

"Got a bit tense in there," he said.

"Roisin's not behind this," Paul growled.

"Dude, relax, I'm on your side," he replied, his hands up. Paul nodded as he turned and they both began walking in the direction of his house.

"I don't for a second believe Jacob brought the Cullens in for help," Paul said. "He did it because he knows the packs can't touch Roisin."

"Surely not," Jared said with a chuckle. Paul shot him a serious look. "Oh, shit. You really think he brought them in so they could take her down?"

"I wouldn't put it past him. He already thinks she's doing this and he doesn't have any proof," Paul replied. "Which means I have to protect her. I'm going to patrol around her house tonight. Make sure they stay away."

"Okay. Need some help?" Jared asked. Paul nodded, grateful he had at least one member of the packs on his side. "You're going to ignore whatever orders Sam gives you, aren't you?"

"As long as he doesn't give me an alpha order, yea," Paul replied.

"You know he will if you force him," Jared said. "But I don't think he's completely on board with Jacob's theory, if that helps."

"At least someone in there was thinking logically," Paul replied. Jared went silent a few moments. Paul looked over at him and then back at his house. "Spit it out."

"I hate to admit it… but there's still a lot that you don't know about Roisin," he said. "Not that I think she's responsible or anything, but it is a bit strange."

"We haven't known each other all that long," Paul shot back. "She's still learning to trust me."

But he couldn't help as the thought wrestled its way into his mind, lodging there. And then growing as he thought about all the things he had experienced around Roisin. Things that he had explained away with the imprint but now didn't make all that much sense.

How intense his imprint had been - much more intense than the others. That first night when he nearly stumbled when she spoke just from the power in her voice. Why he always thought of the sun or summer around her. All the secrets. The things he thought he had seen but then dismissed. Her panic attack at the movie theater. The film had obviously conjured up bad memories, but of what? Was it vampires? Or just the violence of it? And then the fact that she was running from something.

What horror had Roisin lived through? Who had hurt her or wanted to hurt her?

"Whatever it is, I'm sure we'll figure it out," Jared said. Paul nodded. They had just reached his house and Jared slapped him on the back. "I'm gonna get some food. What time you want me back?"

"An hour tops, maybe," Paul said. Jared nodded and took off at a jog down the road. Sighing, Paul walked into the house and went straight to the kitchen.

"Emily not feed you?" his dad shouted from the living room.

"Left early," Paul replied as he quickly made up a plate of leftovers. He then walked in and sat on the couch.

"Looks like Sam's got you on patrol tonight," Ben said, glancing at his full plate and then turning his attention back to the TV. "Because of that girl that went missing?"

"Tara. Her name's Tara," Paul replied in between bites.

"Right. Sorry. She's your imprint's friend," Ben said, his voice gentler. "How's Roisin taking it?"

"Not well, last I spoke to her," Paul replied. "She's spent most of her time with Meg and Trey. Or with Tara's parents. I'm patrolling around her house tonight."

Ben raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"You think this thing might go after her?" he asked, sitting up.

"Don't know, but I feel like she's connected somehow," Paul said. "Not that she did it, but whatever it is… I don't want to chance that it could be after her too."

It was too much of a coincidence that the morning after it was pretty much announced to a party full of people that something was after Roisin, her friends would be attacked. But he couldn't tell his dad that. He had already told him that he imprinted and well, even though his father knew about the wolves, he found that telling him things in small doses worked better.

"Well, just be safe," Ben said, leaning back in his chair. "Still can't seem to figure out what this could be. You said it wasn't a vampire, right?"

"Don't worry, Dad. Whatever it is, I can take it on," Paul said, trying to reassure him. He didn't want his father to worry more than he likely already was. Ben nodded.

"Okay."

Paul quickly finished eating and then went to his room to change into something more comfortable for the patrol. The whole time thinking about all the possibilities. It shouldn't be such a surprise that there might be other things out there. Wolves, werewolves and vampires existed, after all. But this was strange, even for him.

What else could be out there?

****

The only thing anyone was talking about at school the next day was the accident. Roisin went through her day ignoring the looks she got, her mind whirling around and around.

Who did this? Was Tara still alive? How could she fix this?

Roisin had spent a good amount of time at the hospital, going over the incident with Megan and Trey as many times as she could put them through. Then spent some time at Tara's with her parents, doing what she could to help them though also listening in to updates from the police. Chief Swan had taken her aside once to ask her a few questions, though she wasn't sure why. She hadn't been there when it happened. Her intrigue had spiked when he seemed to focus on when they had arrived in Forks, where they were before. It made no sense as everyone was convinced this was just a horrible accident.

But there was something in his eyes that told Roisin that Chief Swan knew more than he was letting on.

When she wasn't with Meg, Trey or Tara's parents, she was at home brainstorming with Sean. Sometimes Mae would join them, though she seemed a bit hesitant. Roisin still hadn't spoken to her about what happened at the party and honestly, she wasn't sure if she even wanted to. She needed to find out who had taken Tara. And fast.

Roisin walked into the cafeteria for lunch, half dreading it. Tara's disappearance had been that much more obvious as she went through her classes, seeing the empty desk next to her. And then Megan and Trey's empty desks. Megan was out of the hospital, but both of them were still rather worked up about the ordeal and weren't planning to come back for at least a week or so. Roisin didn't blame them. She had considered skipping as well, using the time to go out in search of more clues. But then she thought perhaps she might overhear something that could help. And they needed to keep up pretenses.

"It's so sad," Carly murmured as Roisin sat in her usual spot next to Mae, her eyes fixed on the three empty seats.

"I know… should we do something? Put together a memorial service or something?" Rosemary replied.

"She's not dead," Roisin snapped, her eyes flicking over to the two. They both jumped slightly, but then their expressions filled with pity. "She could still be out there…"

"I'm so sorry. I know this must be hard for you. It's hard for all of us," Carly crooned, causing Roisin to frown. Carly hadn't given two shits about Tara.

"And well, it might be better to face the facts, sweetie. If they haven't found her by now… they aren't going to," Rosemary said.

"Shut up, Rosemary," Mae barked. The human girl looked at her in surprise. "There's still hope they could find her alive."

For a moment, Roisin felt like everything was back like it used to be as Mae shot her a small smile. That they were once again best friends. Just the two of them against the world. But then Roisin remembered the things she had said at the party and she frowned, turning to her lunch even though she didn't feel all that hungry.

All around them, the cafeteria buzzed with conversation, a lot of the kids looking over at their table. Roisin shifted around, not wanting all the attention.

"What's Chief Swan doing here?" Carly said.

Roisin looked over, seeing the police chief standing at the entrance of the cafeteria with the principal, his eyes roaming around until they settled on Roisin and Mae.

"He wants to talk to us," she said so softly that only Mae heard her.

"What? Why?" Mae replied, confused.

"He asked me questions at Tara's yesterday," Roisin said. "About why we moved here."

"But I thought _they_ thought it was an accident," Mae said, now looking over at the chief as well.

"I think he knows something… that maybe he believes there's more in the world than just humans," Roisin breathed, looking back down at her lunch.

"There's no way," Mae said. Roisin glanced at her and then over at Swan again.

"I don't know how, but I could feel it when he was talking to me. He thinks we had something to do with it, though I'm not sure if he understands how," Roisin said.

"Well, I'm not answering any questions," Mae said, standing. "Come on."

Roisin looked up at her in confusion and then followed her, lifting her bag onto her shoulder as the two made their way over to the door that led outside. She glanced over her shoulder, seeing the chief frown and then start towards them.

"You know this is going to make us look more suspicious, right?" Roisin said as they both picked up the pace.

"Possibly? But it's better than playing 20 questions with a nosy police officer who may or may not know that the supernatural exists," Mae replied. "Hurry."

They stepped outside and looked around. Finding the coast clear, they both fell unseen and in an instant were at Roisin's jeep. As soon as they slid into it, they watched as Chief Swan stepped outside, a confused look on his face as he looked around.

"Wait until he goes back in," Mae said.

"I know," Roisin replied with a huff, her eyes still fixed on him. After walking around a bit, Swan gave up and went back inside.

The two quickly came back into sight as Roisin turned on the car and they pulled out. Didn't need people seeing a car driving itself through town.

"We need to figure out what's going on and fast," Mae said. "I don't want any more students to go missing."

Roisin looked over at her, slightly surprised. Mae glanced at her and then looked down at her hands.

"I'm sorry, you know. About what I said," she then said softly. "I was just… jealous. You seemed happy with this new little life you created. One that didn't involve me. "

Roisin sighed and reached over taking her hand and squeezing it.

"My life will always include you, Mae," she said. "You're my best friend." Mae looked up at her, a small smile appearing. "No matter what, we're in this together."

Mae brightened up exponentially as she looked back at the road.

"Okay. Sean should be home. Let's hurry and strategize."

****

Roisin was once again pacing around the living room as Sean and Cara sat on the sofa and Mae lounged in an armchair.

"What do we have so far?" Roisin asked.

"I checked around with as many of the solitary I could find. No one knows anything. They didn't stick around after the party ended," Cara said. She glanced at Sean. "I checked with some of the Shadow Court I'm still in contact with. They didn't know anything about it either. Hadn't even been around here."

Sean stiffened at the mention of his former court. Cara reached out and rubbed his back.

"But that doesn't mean this isn't them," Mae pushed. "Your friends just might be left out of the loop."

"I know," Cara said dryly. "I'm still looking into it."

"There's another option," Sean said, meeting Roisin's eyes. "I know you think it's not related, but it does sound like Rian."

Tense silence fell over the room, though Mae seemed confused.

"Seriously? Why would he get involved?" she then scoffed. Sean shot Roisin a pointed look, but she shook her head.

"We are betrothed, as you remember. My parents have likely reached out to Winter for help finding me," Roisin said, thankful that was at least the truth. "Despite what you think, they are looking for me." Mae just shrugged.

"Okay, but steal Tara?" Mae said. "Why?"

Roisin looked over at Sean, seeing the look of concern come over his face.

"He's not what you think, Mae," Sean said. "He would give Cathal a run for his money. I could see him doing this… for reasons..."

Roisin wrapped her arms around herself, turning away. She closed her eyes, warding off the memories. She didn't want to think that the Winter Court crown prince could be here. Could be watching her. Knew about her friendship with Tara, Meg and Trey. It sounded exactly like something he would do. Take her mortal friends and hold them as ransom to force her to come back to the Fae world. Or that he might know about Paul.

She didn't want it to be him. And she didn't want to talk about it.

Mae snorted and rolled her eyes.

"Whatever," she said. "Okay. So it could be Winter. How do we figure that out?"

"Keep talking to solitary for now," Cara said.

"We could look into the graffiti. Though I think a lot of it has been painted over now," Roisin said, grateful they weren't talking about Rian or the Winter Court again.

"I got an idea," Mae said, sitting up and smiling. "We lure them out. Have a party."

"Mae, seriously, this is not the time," Roisin groaned.

"Hear me out. If it's Rian or Shadow or even a malicious solitary, having a party will be providing them a smorgasbord of mortals. But we'll keep watch. And then we catch them," she stated as though it made all the sense in the world.

"What makes you think we could even get people here? In case you haven't noticed, everyone thinks Tara is dead," Roisin said, exasperated. "And don't you think it's in bad taste? They're still looking for her body."

"I'll take care of it. And it could be a way to cheer people up. Get their mind off things," Mae said. Roisin rolled her eyes.

"That's never going to work," she said. Mae just smiled mischievously.

"Don't underestimate me, my dear," she said, sitting back in her chair.

"But it's going to make us look more suspicious," Roisin pushed.

Honestly, she was worried this was a very bad idea. They very well could be inviting a dangerous fae into their midst. And it would put them even more on Swan's radar.

"Again, let me take care of it. It'll be fine," Mae said lightly. "We're doing this for Tara. To find her and bring her back alive."

Roisin looked over at Cara and Sean, begging her with her eyes for them to agree that it was a bad idea.

"She has a point," Cara said. "It could draw them out. Bring them right to us." She looked at Sean. "What do you think?"

"It's better than having to go to the Shadow Court and trying to make a deal," he admitted. "Or Winter, for that matter."

Roisin frowned. She hadn't thought about that. There was a reason he didn't want to get involved with them, considering how he had left them. And he knew why she never wanted to step foot in the Winter Court ever again. She'd probably never make it out alive.

"Okay. I say we do it," Cara said, looking over at Mae. The Summer fae grinned and hopped up out of her chair.

"Got it," she said, already pulling her phone out and dialing as she walked out of the room.

"I'll go check with some others," Cara said, leaning over to kiss Sean's cheek and then leaving.

When the two of them were alone, Sean stood and walked over to Roisin.

"You really think this could be Rian?" Roisin asked, finally letting some of her fear sneak out. "That he could be behind this?"

Sean reached out and pulled her into his arms, holding her tightly.

"Maybe?" he replied. "But I won't let him take you. We'll figure it out. There's got to be a way around the prophecy."

"Fuck that prophecy," Roisin snapped. "It's ruined my life."

"I know. We'll find a way," he replied. Roisin tightened her arms around him.

"By the goddesses, I hope so…"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, more answers (maybe?) but obviously more questions. Bear with it, we're getting there… And I'm trying to temper myself with posting since I'm only about half-way through writing Chapter 23 at the moment, but I REALLY want to get to the point where everyone finds out about everyone... we're soooo close... I might just go ahead and post up to that point and then take a break for a few days until I can get more written. I have to take breaks with writing, because I'm getting into more dramatic parts and dude... it's intense writing it. But at the same time, there are parts in the second half that I REALLY want to get into writing, so I go back and forth between powering through chapters and then collapsing of exhaustion... And well, finding out about each other kind of sets off a lot of things in the story. I've realized that I go from 0 to 60 and then never really let up on the gas that much for almost the entire second half of the story... which, yea. Intense to write and intense to read.
> 
> Thanks for reading and following!


	17. Seasons in the Sun

Roisin was distracted. That was clear. Paul sat on the floor leaning against her bed, watching as she went through her massive DVD collection, choosing and then dismissing several options in a manner of seconds.

Ever since he walked through the door actually, she was constantly moving. Indecisive. It took about 20 minutes for her to settle on an array of snacks in the kitchen before they went to her room. He looked over, noticing the pile of books on her desk that looked untouched, papers that he assumed was homework scattered all across it. He knew that she hadn't been in school since Monday and it appeared that she hadn't been able to work on it, which seemed really unlike her.

Every night when he watched the house from the nearby forest, he saw her light on for nearly the whole night. At times, she left her curtains open and he could see her pacing around, her brow furrowed. He saw that she, Sean and Mae often met up with the woman with the purple hair - Cara. The four of them seemingly deep in discussion.

It was strange, but he wasn't sure how to ask her about it. If he did it directly, she would know he had been watching her. And he was still trying to figure out how to tell her that he was a wolf and about the imprint. Granted it wasn't like he had a lot of opportunities. This was the first time they met up since he stayed over on the weekend.

"Okay, this one," Roisin said, finally sliding a DVD into the player and then walking over to sit next to him.

He slung his arm around her as she settled in, leaning her head on his shoulder. He looked down, studying her. While she was seemingly calm right now, he could tell she was upset. Worried. He just wasn't sure if it was because her friend was missing or if it was something more.

"What?" she asked, looking up at him with wide eyes.

"How are you doing?" he asked softly, his brow furrowed. Roisin frowned and looked back at the TV.

"I'm hanging in there. Talked to Tara's parents again today. They said the police still haven't found anything," she replied. "They're wondering when to hold the memorial service."

She blinked rapidly as though she was trying not to cry. Paul turned slightly and pulled her into his arms.

"It's okay. It's going to be okay," he said softly.

"I just… I can't believe that she's gone…" she whispered. "Holding a memorial service… I don't want it to be real."

"I'm sorry," he said, his heart breaking for her. Of course this was all about Tara. Paul couldn't imagine losing any of his friends. Jared. Sam. Hell, he'd feel horrible if anything happened to anyone in the packs.

Maybe even Jacob.

"I just feel so useless," Roisin murmured.

"Hey," Paul said, pulling back from her. Her cheeks were now splotchy as tears poured down. "There's nothing you could do. It was a freak accident."

Roisin nodded and looked away, but not before he saw something in her eyes. Something that told him she didn't believe it was an accident. Along with a hint of guilt. He got a sinking feeling in his gut.

"Are you going back to school tomorrow?" he asked. She shook her head.

"Sean said we could take the rest of the week off," she replied, wiping her cheeks. "Probably for the best. I can't really focus on anything right now anyway."

Paul nodded, his thoughts going to the latest pack meeting. He had tried to sit through it, but ended up leaving early when he heard that Chief Swan had been trying to talk to Mae and Roisin, going as far as to go to the school. They had then somehow disappeared.

Thankfully, everyone agreed that Charlie shouldn't get anymore involved with questioning people and Jacob had him back off. But he was even more suspicious of the two after they had thwarted Charlie. And more convinced they were hiding something. Jacob had literally become a dog with a bone. Paul had even found him lurking around the house, though he ran off before he could confront him.

"It's going to be okay, Ro," he said again, feeling a bit helpless himself. He was doing everything he could to keep her safe, but he felt like it wasn't enough.

He needed to know what she did.

"Ro…" he started. She looked up at him. "Who are you running from?"

She frowned and looked away, her body stiffening.

"I don't see why you need to know that," she said.

"I know it's not related or anything, but… I know that you're upset and stressed out. I just… I want to help," he pleaded.

"I… shouldn't tell you," she said, her voice barely a whisper.

"You can tell me," he pushed.

"There's nothing you can do," she then replied. "I told you - Sean and I have it covered."

"Still… I'm sure there's something I can-"

"Drop it, Paul. Please," she said, looking at him, begging him with her eyes. "I… if there comes a time when you need to know, I'll tell you. But for now, I don't want to talk about it."

Paul swallowed and nodded, the sinking feeling in his stomach again.

"Okay," he said. Roisin sighed and turned back to the TV. He glanced at her a few times and then took a deep breath.

Looked like he needed to finally come clean on his secret. He couldn't ask her to trust him if he wasn't going to fully trust her.

"Ro, there's something I need to tell you," he said, closing his eyes for a moment. He then opened them and looked over at her.

"What is it?" she asked, frowning slightly. Worry filled her eyes.

"I…"

"RO!" Mae's voice sounded through the door.

Paul sighed in frustration as Roisin all but bolted up and over to the door, opening it. Mae bounced in, a grin on her face.

"Everything is set for this- oh, hi, Paul," Mae said, her eyes widening as the smile faded slightly. "Sorry. Didn't know you were here." She turned to Roisin. "We'll talk later."

She then spun around and walked off as Roisin shut the door.

"What's going on?" Paul asked, getting the feeling that he wasn't supposed to hear that much. Roisin grimaced.

"Mae is throwing a party this weekend," she said with a groan as she walked over and sat next to him. "I think it's a horrible idea, but she won't take no for an answer."

Paul frowned as well, agreeing with Roisin's assessment. At least it looked like she didn't want to have it.

"And people are coming?" he asked, surprised. With Forks still reeling about the accident, it seemed extremely in bad taste.

"Apparently a lot of kids at school want to let off steam," she said, frowning. "And well… Mae is good at talking people into things. Especially stupid things." She sighed and shook her head. "It's a bad idea. But it's happening."

"Hey, you want me there?" he asked. Roisin looked over at him, her eyes wide. "I can come if you want me to."

Roisin nodded, smiling.

"Yea, I'd like that," she said softly.

"I can stay tonight if you want me to as well," he then said. He really didn't want to leave. Outside of looking out for her, he thought he might have a better chance at telling her the truth if he stayed.

She thought about it for a few moments and then nodded, her eyes meeting his.

"Yea, okay," she said softly. She then leaned her head on his shoulder, turning her eyes back to the TV. "Honestly, I just don't want to think about any of this anymore…"

He wrapped his arms around her, kissing the top of her head.

"We don't have to talk about it anymore right now," he said softly.

"Thanks."

****

Roisin crept out of the bedroom later that night after Paul had fallen asleep and went to the kitchen. She jumped slightly when she saw Sean sitting there, a glass of scotch in front of him. She then sighed and walked over, sitting next to him. She reached out and grabbed his glass, taking a sip.

"Paul asleep?" he asked. She nodded.

"Find anything new?" she asked. He took a deep breath and slowly let it out.

"Not about the fae, no. But something's been creeping around in the woods," he said. "Something not fae."

Roisin's eyes widened as she looked towards the windows, searching through the dark trying to see anything. Something not fae?

"How do you know?" she asked, looking back at him.

"Saw some prints. It's an animal, but… it's bigger than a normal animal should be," he said. "Maybe a wolf…"

"Giant wolves? In the woods here?" she asked, her voice dropping to a whisper. "Why?"

He shrugged and took a drink of his scotch.

"I don't know," he said. "Maybe they just have big wolves here."

"You don't think that it's something else, do you?" she asked. "I mean… I've heard about werewolves… You think there are werewolves here?" Again, Sean shrugged.

"Could be. But I doubt it. We'd have more reports about people going missing on full moons. They're brutal and have zero humanity when they shift," he said, staring at the glass.

"Have you… have you seen one?" she asked. Sean glanced at her and then back at the glass.

"Cathal was obsessed with them. Before I left, he liked to put together spectacles, as he called them. Wait until they shifted and then put them in a cage with a human. Then let the bloodbath go on," he said. "It didn't last all that long. Sometimes he'd pit them against each other."

"Oh my goddess," Roisin uttered, her eyes wide in shock. Sean took another drink.

"He would leave them in there. And when they shifted back and saw what they did… some of them couldn't handle it," he said, his expression hardening. "Granted that was the least of what he did…"

Roisin reached over and took his hand, squeezing it. Sean looked over at her, smiling slightly.

"Good news - you never have to go back," she replied. He nodded, squeezing her hand in return. "So you don't think it's a werewolf?"

"No. But definitely think there are large wolves running around," he replied. "Be careful if you go out there. They're likely powerful. Might not kill you, but could get in a good bite. Definitely maim you a bit."

"I'll be careful," she said with a sigh. She reached for his glass, taking another drink. Sean stared at her a few moments and then shook his head.

"Look, I like Paul, but… Ro… you really need to think about this," he said. Roisin frowned.

"He asked again tonight. I didn't tell him," she replied.

And while she didn't want to cut him out of her life, she knew he wasn't going to give up. Sure he stopped tonight, but he wasn't going to in the future. He would ask again and she couldn't let him know. They never let mortals know the truth about them.

"He's going to ask again," Sean said.

"I know," Roisin replied.

"You need to cut him loose, Ro," Sean said with a sigh. "Regardless, you know we're going to have to leave when this is all over with. As much as you want to, we can't stay here."

Roisin frowned as she looked over at him, her heart clenching. She didn't want to leave Paul. And had decided she wanted to stay with him as long as she could even though she didn't completely understand why she was so attached so fast. Well, no, she supposed part of it was just fae nature - jumping headfirst into something. But then she would move on to something else just as quickly. However, this was still different. She didn't want to move on to someone else. And she didn't understand why that was or how she knew it.

"And I worry about you. You're far more into him than you've ever been into… anyone," he continued. "We need to stay focused."

"Yea," she said, reaching for his glass again, finishing it off. Sean didn't say anything as he refilled it. "I just… I can't. And I don't understand why." She looked up at him, his dark blue eyes full of sympathy. "I can't… I don't want to leave him. It makes no sense, but I… I feel this connection with him. And… I want to tell him everything."

"You can't do that, Ro," Sean said softly. "It's too dangerous - for both of you. And like I said we can't stay here. We're already drawing too much attention. Are you ready to drag him around the world with you? Away from everything he's known? What's more, what happens when enough time passes?"

Roisin didn't respond, just took another drink. It was true. Paul didn't deserve that kind of life. And that was _if_ he accepted that she was fae. Not to mention, he would continue to age and get older while she would never change. A sudden heavy blanket of melancholy fell over her. How would she live without him?

"And he's a distraction. We need to be focusing on what's going on," he said. "And figuring out the prophecy."

"I know," she said harshly. She tightly gripped the glass. "I'll… I'll take care of it. After the party."

"Okay," he said, standing. "Don't stay up all night worrying."

"I won't," she replied.

She sat there, slowly working her way through another glass, thinking everything over. She knew that she needed to let Paul go. But she didn't want to. Never had she thought that she could feel this way about anyone. Not after what had happened. Not after she lost her trust for just about everyone, save Mae. Sean had helped her to rebuild the ability to trust again. And then she had met Paul.

A mortal that she had a near instantaneous connection to. That she wanted to be around all the time. She didn't understand any of it. Why this would happen now. And why it would be with a mortal.

She then allowed her thoughts to wander and they once again came to the damn prophecy that ruined everything. The goddesses didn't like to mess around with shit most of the time. They were content to just let the fae be and do their own thing. But every once in a while they would pop up just to screw with things. And one of them decided to pop down a thousand years ago to deliver a prophecy that everyone would forget about until the day she was born.

"A child of summer shall be born on the most sacred of days and through her power, shall there be peace. Worlds once broken, shall be reunited and under her reign shall they prosper," Roisin murmured, long ago committing it to memory. "Thanks a lot."

She then downed the rest of her drink and stood, making her way across the living room and slipping back into her room. She stopped for a moment, watching Paul as he slept. He was on his back, the comforter pushed down to his waist and his chest bare. His head was turned towards her side of the bed as one arm was tossed back over his head.

She then quietly walked over and crawled back into bed. She settled her head on his shoulder and immediately he pulled her closer in his sleep. Roisin kissed his cheek before closing her eyes.

She knew that she needed to break things off, but she seriously didn't want to. She prayed that something would allow her to stay.

****

Paul listened as Roisin's breathing evened out, signaling that she had fallen asleep. Only then did he open his eyes and looked down at her. He reached out and smoothed her hair away from her face. In sleep, she looked peaceful. As though she didn't have a care in the world.

He wished she could always be like this.

When he woke up and found the bed empty, he looked towards the bathroom, but found the door open and the inside dark. He then got up and opened the door, hearing voices from the kitchen.

He struggled with himself, not wanting to betray her trust, but he needed to know what secrets Roisin was keeping from him. It was the only way he could help her.

"Look, I like Paul, but… Ro… you really need to think about this," he heard Sean say. Paul stopped, his eyes widening.

"He asked again tonight. I didn't tell him," she replied.

"He's going to ask again," Sean said.

"I know," Roisin replied.

"You need to cut him loose, Ro," Sean said with a sigh. "Regardless, you know we're going to have to leave when this is all over with. We can't stay here... And I worry about you. You're far more into him than you've ever been into… anyone… We need to stay focused."

Paul felt his heart clench. They were planning to leave again. And Sean didn't want him to come with them. Paul knew that he couldn't live like that. He couldn't be away from her.

"Yea," she said. "I just… I can't. And I don't understand why. I can't… I don't want to leave him. It makes no sense, but I… I feel this connection with him. And… I want to tell him everything."

"You can't do that, Ro," Sean said softly. "It's too dangerous - for both of you. And we can't stay here. Are you ready to drag him around the world with you? What's more, what happens when enough time passes?"

Fear coursed through Paul for Roisin. He finally had confirmation that whatever she was running from, it was dangerous. She needed his protection more than he thought. And they were hiding far more from him than he had thought. What did Sean mean by time passing?

"And he's a distraction. We need to be focusing on what's going on," Sean continued. "And figuring out the prophecy."

"I know," she said harshly. "I'll… I'll take care of it. After the party."

"Okay," Sean said over the sound of a stool scraping across the floor. "Don't stay up all night worrying."

Paul turned and quickly made his back to the room before Sean caught him. He then crawled back into the bed, his mind whirling. There was no way he could go back to sleep now.

Roisin was in danger, that was clear. And Sean thought that Paul and Roisin couldn't be together. And apparently there was some sort of prophecy that involved her. What did all of this mean? Was Roisin even human? What was she running from?

This just got a whole lot stranger.

But one thought broke out over the others. He needed to protect Roisin. And he needed to tell her the truth. He wasn't about to let anything happen to her.

****

The next morning, Roisin woke up to find the bed empty. She looked around and didn't see Paul in the bathroom. She then got up and made her way to the kitchen, finding Paul there in front of the stove. He looked over at her and smiled, dressed in a pair of sweatpants. She wasn't sure where he got them - he hadn't brought a bag that she saw and she knew there was no way he would fit in any of Sean's things. Maybe he had a change of clothes in his truck?

"Morning," he said, turning back to the stove.

"You cook," she said, pleasantly surprised as she sat down and reached for a pitcher of orange juice, pouring it into a waiting glass.

"Yea, I can do stuff," he replied with a chuckle. "Had to learn. Dad and I take turns."

"Right," she said, remembering that his mother had died when he was young. Goddess, he had to grow up really fast. Her heart went out to him.

And then her stomach dropped, thinking how eventually she was going to have to disappear from his life as well.

 _It'll be fine. Mortals have short memories. He'll find someone else and will be happy,_ she told herself. _After some time, he won't even remember you…_

But the thought didn't comfort her at all.

He then turned and walked over to the island, shoveling a bunch of scrambled eggs onto her plate and then some onto one next to it. He turned and put the pan back on the stove as Roisin took in the spread. There was ham and bacon, sliced tomatoes, biscuits, cut fruit, butter, jam. Basically way more food that the two of them could possibly eat - or well, he could put away a lot of food now that she thought about it.

And he must have gotten up really early to make all this.

She picked up a fork and took a bite of eggs, looking over as Paul walked around and sat next to her. He smiled and then dug in.

"You really have this cooking thing down," she commented. Paul shrugged.

"Again, someone had to do it. Dad did eventually get better," he said. Roisin nodded and continued to eat, trying not to think about what she was going to have to do.

She always knew their relationship would have an expiration date, she just didn't think it would be this soon. She had two days. Only two days. Goddess, she didn't even know how she was going to do this. Or how she was supposed to focus on smoking out this fae when she was constantly thinking about Paul. Maybe Sean had a point about being distracted.

"So… I was thinking…"

"Can you stay here the rest of the week?" Roisin asked abruptly, cutting him off.

Paul's eyes widened slightly, as though he wasn't expecting her to ask him that. Honestly, she was surprised herself. But if she only had a few days with this, then she wanted him close all the time.

"Uh… yea. Sure. I mean, I have to go to work and I need to fit in some homework at some time," he said, starting to smile. Roisin returned it and went back to eating.

"Oh, what was it you were thinking?" she asked, looking over at him.

"Nothing. Later," he said. Roisin nodded. "So… what are you planning to do today? I need to get to work in a bit."

"Just catching up on homework, I guess," she replied.

"Okay. I'll stop by and get some things after work and then I'll be back," he said.

"Sounds good…"

They continued on talking about mundane things throughout breakfast and were doing the dishes when Sean and Mae finally appeared. Paul then kissed her on the cheek and went to take a shower.

"He's staying. You sure that's a good idea, Ro?" Sean asked.

"I have a couple days left with him. Let me have that, at least," she said, frowning at him. He studied her a moment and then nodded.

"Okay. We should go out and sniff around while he's at work," he then said, going to grab a plate.

"Okay," she said.

She couldn't even think that this would be okay, because she knew that was a lie. It was going to be anything but.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, yea. Decided since we're pretty much almost there, I would post up to where everyone finds out about everyone. And then I won't post until I get a few more chapters written. Guys, you have no idea how hard it is to write some of the fae dialogue at times… That whole no lying thing is seriously kicking me in the butt hardcore. But at the same time, it's a good challenge as a writer. Coming up with ways to play with the truth and skirt around it. Definitely had some fun with an upcoming chapter where we meet the king of the Shadow Court. I'm seriously happy with what I've done with him…
> 
> Anywho, thanks for reading and following! Stay tuned for the next chapter… where everything is going to start kicking off majorly…


	18. Summer Madness

This was a mistake. A big mistake. Roisin could feel it.

There were far more fae there than she liked, mixing and mingling with the various students from Forks and La Push. While they were all behaving - and Roisin and Sean had locked up all the fae wine in an iron safe, which was _not_ a fun experience - she could feel it in her bones that something bad was going to happen.

But then again, wasn't that the point? They were trying to draw out whatever fae was causing all the trouble. And with a gathering this big with this many mortals, well, even if they were trying to stay hidden, it would be like catnip. And Roisin was impressed with Mae. She wasn't exactly sure how she did it, but most of their high school was there and no one seemed to think being at a party right now was anything strange.

She looked over across the room, meeting eyes with Sean who stood unseen next to Cara. He nodded towards her, letting her know that they were ready for whatever. She then looked over, seeing Mae dancing with Josh, though she too met Roisin's eyes and nodded.

It would be okay, she told herself. Even if it was a group of fae behind everything, they could take them on with just the four of them. Yes, Mae and Cara were only regular court fae, but Cara was former Shadow Court and strong. A good fighter. And then there was Roisin and Sean. Surely whatever was going on, they could end it tonight and get Tara back.

"You okay?"

Roisin jumped slightly and looked over at Paul, who was watching her with a cautious look. He had been doing that a lot the last few days, though she knew he was worried about her with everything. She had been in contact with Megan and Tara's parents near constantly. They still hadn't found Tara. But hopefully tonight they would get a lead. And hopefully they would find her. Alive.

"Yea, I'm fine," she said, smiling at him and hoping to reassure him. By the goddess, she was distracted. And not even the pull to him could get her to stop thinking about what could happen.

She was happy he was there on the one hand, finding herself calmer. But at the same time, she didn't know what would happen tonight and she didn't want to put him in any danger. Not to mention that she needed to break up with him. She still hadn't figured out how to do that. Part of her wondered if he suspected something. Several times throughout the past few days, he had started to tell her something, but then stopped. She worried what he had been about to say.

"Just… a lot more people than I expected," she said, looking out around the party again.

"I was surprised," he said. "Didn't think this many would show up."

"Yea, I was surprised too," she muttered. She saw him frown out of the corner of his eye and turned back to him, smiling. "Just you know… hostess problems and all."

There was something out of the corner of her eye. Roisin whipped her head around, but everything seemed fine. Maybe she was just being paranoid.

"Come on, let's dance. That should help you relax," Paul said, taking her hand.

Right. She needed to act like everything was normal, even if she felt that it wasn't.

So she let him lead her out to the middle of the dance floor where she wrapped her arms around his neck and began moving as he rested his hands on her waist. For a few moments, she allowed herself to relax. To enjoy dancing with Paul. Her smile grew more genuine as he pulled her closer, bending his head down towards her. She bit her lower lip, wanting nothing more than to lose herself in the music and his arms.

But just out of the corner of her eye, she saw something again. This time as she glanced over, she knew it wasn't her mind playing tricks. She saw a mortal girl - Roisin recalled her name was Sarah, they had English together - being led out on the verandah. A glazed look on her face.

Shit.

"Sorry! I have to check on something," she shouted as she looked back at Paul, speaking so abruptly that he literally jumped.

"I… okay," he said. She smiled apologetically and slid out of his arms, moving through the dancing bodies to the door.

Keeping at normal speed, she stepped outside and shut the door behind her. She couldn't see anyone. Which only confirmed her fears. It was a fae.

Closing her eyes, she breathed deeply and when she opened them, she knew that she was unseen. Scanning the backyard, she saw a bit of rustling on the far treeline. Before she could take a breath, she was there, looking around yet again.

"Where are we going?" she heard Sarah asked, her voice light and vague.

"Somewhere to have some fun," another voice replied, but Roisin didn't recognize it.

She shot off after the two, following the sound of their movement. Even though the fae must have been carrying Sarah in order to move quickly, they were still making a rather large amount of noise. Finally Roisin stepped out into a clearing, catching up to them.

"Stop," she ordered, pushing as much power into her voice as she could.

The fae didn't move, a hood over its head and its back to her. It stumbled slightly.

"Leave her alone," Roisin then said. The fae looked down at its hand, which was still gripping Sarah's arm.

"Why do you care?" it asked, its face still hidden in shadow.

"Because I protect this place and you will not take anyone else under my watch," she said, stepping towards them and already going through her options to get Sarah away safely. "Where is Tara?"

Suddenly, there was a loud rustling. Both Roisin and the fae looked around the clearing. It was coming from all directions. Whatever was there, it had them surrounded. Roisin looked back to the two.

"Let her go!" she shouted again. The fae seemed to glance back at her and then suddenly, it was gone, leaving Sarah to collapse on the ground.

Roisin made herself visible and quickly ran up to her at a normal speed, dropping down on her knees next to her.

"Are you okay?" she asked, looking into Sarah's face. Her eyes were clear, but she seemed confused as she looked around.

"How did I get here?" she asked.

The rustling grew louder and closer. Roisin looked around frantically. Shit. This was not good. Had this been some sort of trap? Fuck, why had she gone out without telling anyone? And whatever it was, she couldn't fight it as a fae in front of Sarah.

"I'm so sorry about this," she said softly, putting her hand to Sarah's forehead.

"Wha…"

Sarah fell back on the ground, her eyes sliding shut as Roisin was immediately on her feet, her eyes once again scanning the dark forest. Her entire body was tense as she waited and prayed that she could get Sarah out of this alive.

****

Paul sighed as he walked over to a table and made himself a drink. He hoped that the party would help Roisin relax. That maybe this time she wouldn't be so distracted. But it turned out to be the same damn thing.

She disappeared.

The last few days had been hard. Being around her constantly was hard. He had been on the verge of telling her so many times, but then couldn't. Or they were interrupted. He had been distracted at work, going over and over various ways to tell her the truth about him. Even Marshmallow had commented on how distracted he was. He had also been skipping pack meetings, but Sam had let him off, knowing that he was with Roisin. Thankfully he hadn't pushed him on it, trying to glean more information on them. He was pretty sure Jacob was chomping at the bit to push him on it. He knew they were out patrolling the forest around the house somewhere.

He felt an ache in his chest. He was feeling it more and more, becoming more worried the closer they got to the party, knowing that she intended to break up with him afterwards. He still wasn't sure how he was going to deal with that.

"There you are."

He looked up, seeing Jared walking towards him, a concerned look on his face. That couldn't be good.

"What's wrong?" Paul asked, glancing around the party. He wasn't sure what it was, but now that he really looked, something seemed off.

Some of the party-goers definitely weren't from around here. And were moving in ways normal people shouldn't. But for some reason, Jared didn't seem to notice.

"Just got word from Sam. Something is going down in the woods. We need to get there. Now," he said. Paul looked back at him and nodded, the adrenaline starting to kick in.

Finally something was happening. A break. Something to focus on rather than Roisin and her secrets.

"Grab Embry and Quil and let's go."

The two made their way through the crowd, managing to pull a grumbling Embry and Quil with them. Once outside where it was dark and seeing no one else was around, they moved into the trees and quickly undressed before shifting.

 _Up ahead,_ Jared said. _Sam's with Jacob. Said to fan out._

 _Got it,_ Paul replied. _They think this is whatever is messing with people?_

_God, I hope._

Quickly, they ran through the trees, Embry and Quil peeling off so that whatever it was, they would surround it. As they neared a clearing, Paul heard Sam order them to slow down. It - whatever it was - was surrounded.

Paul crept closer through the trees, seeing two figures ahead. It was two women and one was leaning over the other.

_Holy shit… is that…_

Paul felt his heart clench. But there was no denying it. Roisin was one of the figures. She looked around the trees and then turned back to the other girl, murmuring something to her that he couldn't hear. Then she placed her hand on the girl's forehead.

His heart nearly stopped when he saw the girl's eyes roll back into her head and she fell back to the ground. What the hell? He came to a complete stop, unable to move as he watched her stand and look around the clearing, a fierce look on her face. He had a feeling that she wasn't completely human, but seeing it with his own eyes was something completely new.

Whatever was going on, it couldn't be her. She couldn't be the person behind Tara's disappearance. It just wasn't possible. Just like she shouldn't have been able to knock that girl out by putting her hand on her forehead.

But the others kept moving and for a second, he swore he saw flames in her eyes and something that looked like wings unfurl from her back.

What the hell was going on?

****

Without warning, a large black wolf, bigger than a normal wolf should be, stepped out of the trees, growling softly at Roisin. She backed up slightly, but held her arms out. Right. Sean had warned her about the wolves. But he said that he didn't think it was werewolves. They were just oversized wolves. She could take on one oversized wolf, surely.

It was then that several other wolves nearly as big stepped out into the clearing in various colors, surrounding her. Another really large wolf - a reddish brown one to her side - snarled at her. Though one to the side of it - this one a dark silver - seemed to whimper. The reddish brown one snapped at it, causing it to growl in response.

Roisin shook her head. She couldn't be distracted right now. She had to save Sarah. Now was not the time to panic.

Taking a deep breath, she stepped further into the ring of wolves around her, her eyes now glowing with flames as she unfurled her wings, rolling her shoulders. Time to show these mutts who they should be afraid of.

"I will not let you hurt her," she shouted, the ground shaking at the power in her voice.

Some of the wolves backed up from her, but the two biggest ones didn't. Yet, for some reason, none of them seemed to move to strike. She wasn't about to give them a chance.

She then lifted up into the air, her wings beating quickly and shot over at the reddish brown wolf. She figured it or maybe the black one was in charge as they were the largest, but either way, it was closer and if she took out the largest ones first, they may have a chance to run away.

She moved so quickly that the wolf didn't have a chance to jump out of the way. Colliding with it, they skidded back into the trees, with Roisin coming to a stop, kicking out and then watching as it continued to fly back, smashing into a tree. Not waiting to see what happened, she flew back to the clearing and squared off with the black one. She crouched down, her muscles ready to launch forward, before something stopped her.

"Ro! Don't!"

Completely forgetting the fight for a moment, she turned, seeing Paul standing there, though he was only wearing a pair of shorts, which was ridiculous for this time of year, even if it was still a bit too warm. His hands were up and his face was pleading. In an instant, she slid her glamour back into place.

"Don't," he begged.

"P-Paul?" she asked, confused.

Oh shit. If he was here… he had seen her. How did he even get here? She left him at the party.

"It's okay. I swear," he said. "We're not going to hurt you."

She then looked around, seeing that the wolves had disappeared and instead she was now surrounded by young men stepping out from the trees, all dressed similarly to Paul. Not just any men. Embry, Quil, Jared and then others she didn't recognize. She looked back at Paul, seeing Jacob walk out from the trees behind him, a scowl on his face as he rubbed his shoulder.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"Could ask you the same thing," Jacob said, his voice full of venom. Roisin frowned at him.

"I was trying to help Sarah," she said, focusing on him. It was easier than looking at Paul right now. "A… something dragged her off. It heard you and ran off."

"What are you?"

Roisin looked over, seeing an older guy stepping towards her, a stern look on his face. The others around him seemed to fall back behind him.

"Me? What are you?" she shot back.

Surely… no. But then… she remembered Sean talking about werewolves. Holy shit. He was wrong. She was surrounded by werewolves. Turning back to Paul, she knew her eyes were likely as wide as saucers. Her boyfriend was a fucking werewolf. But that made no sense. Sean said they lost all humanity when they shifted and no one had actually attacked her. And they only shifted on a full moon. Was it a full moon tonight? She looked up but couldn't see the moon through the trees. She couldn't remember.

"Oh my goddess. You're… you're werewolves," she said, starting to back up.

All the stories she had heard of them were full of bloodshed and violence. Immediately, she positioned herself in between them and Sarah, taking on a defensive stance and ready to launch at whoever attacked first.

A grimace of pain came over Paul's face.

"Nice try, Red. We're not werewolves. And we're not going to hurt her," Jacob said. "But you still haven't answered our question. What are _you_?"

"Chill out. She's obviously not a leech," Embry called out. She looked over at him, seeing him offer her a reassuring smile, and then back at Jacob and Paul.

"Paul?" she asked.

He looked like he was in pain. Like he was fighting against himself over something. He took a step towards her and then stopped.

"We're shapeshifters. Spirit warriors. And we happen to turn into wolves," he said softly. "But we only protect these lands. We don't hurt anyone. Unless you're a vampire or you're hurting others here."

She looked around, seeing the question on everyone's face. They all wanted to know what she was and if she was a danger. For a moment, Roisin panicked. She had never told anyone mortal what she was. But then again, they obviously weren't completely mortal. And they had already seen what she could do. Well, some of it. She had allowed them a glimpse. So Roisin took a deep breath.

"I'm fae."

****

Paul couldn't speak as he watched Roisin look around at the rest of the packs. She appeared normal now, but he couldn't believe his ears. Fae?

"I'm sorry… you're what?" Jacob asked. Immediately, Paul glared at him, a growl sounding from his throat, unhappy with his tone. Roisin may not be human, but she was still his imprint. "A fairy? Don't you guys run around giving girls glass shoes and shit?"

Roisin scowled.

"We prefer fae and no. You're confusing us with stories mortals came up with. That's a fairy godmother, dipshit," she replied just as harshly, flames dancing in her eyes.

Some of the others backed away at the sight, but Paul didn't move. Neither did Jacob or Sam.

"Why are you here?" Sam shouted out. Roisin turned back to him, seeming to pick up that he was their leader.

"Honestly, we just came here to start over. I left the Fae world 100 years ago with Mae, and really, we just want to live quietly. We don't want to hurt anyone," she said.

"You have a funny definition of quietly," Jacob snapped. Roisin turned to glare at him, the flames now back and Paul swore he felt a wave of heat roll over him.

"Trust me. I've been trying to get a handle on it, but Mae… she's still a bit stuck in the old ways," she replied.

"So is she the one causing all the trouble?" Jacob asked. "Did she take the girl?"

"No. It's not us. But it _is_ fae. I had it cornered but then you scared it off," she replied, still scowling at him. "Mae just likes to have parties. Play a few pranks. But she would never hurt anyone intentionally."

"How do you know it's fae?" Sam asked. Roisin looked back at him.

"The nature of it. _We_ don't want to hurt anyone, but there are others that enjoy hurting mortals," she replied. She then snuck a glance at Paul and he could see the hurt in her eyes.

He just wasn't sure what it was about.

"Look, I'll explain, but we should get Sarah inside," she said, now looking around the group.

"There's a huge party going on in there unless you forgot," Jacob said dryly.

Paul was seriously this close to punching him. It was obvious that Roisin wasn't a danger so he wasn't sure just why he was keeping up the suspicious act.

"We were trying to lure the fae out. Which worked until you showed up. But I'll take care of it. Watch her for a sec," Roisin said.

Paul blinked and suddenly she was gone. He looked around the woods.

"Wicked," Seth said. "I think she's faster than vampires."

Before he could say anything else, Roisin was back and kneeling in front of Sarah.

"Sean is getting everyone to leave, so we'll be fine," she said. Paul immediately walked over and bent down.

"I got her," he said softly, lifting the unconscious girl up in his arms. Roisin just nodded. They all then started back towards the house. "What did you do to her?"

Roisin glanced up at him and then at Sarah.

"I just put her to sleep. She'll be okay. Wake up on her own well rested. We can put her in one of the guest rooms," she replied, though it sounded as though her thoughts were elsewhere.

They continued on walking, but Paul felt a million questions bubbling up in his mind. His imprint wasn't human. Fae. And she had wings, though he couldn't see them now. The tattoo on her back suddenly made sense. And the flames in her eyes.

He then thought over everything she had ever told him about her life and it all started to make sense. But at the same time he had more questions. He was sure more than ever that it was another fae looking for her - that was why she told him there was nothing he could do.

"So… 100 years? How old are you?" he asked, blurting out the first thing that came into his mind. Roisin's eyebrows rose as a small smile came over her lips.

"I'm 150," she replied. "But… we mature differently than humans. In your years, I'm probably about 19 or 20 or so…" Paul nodded slowly. "Have you always been… well, a wolf?"

"No. I started phasing when I was 17. It's a genetic thing, but we only start phasing when there's vampires around," he said. Roisin's eyes widened as she looked around.

"There are vampires? Here?" she asked. He chuckled and nodded. She had put on quite a show in front of them and now she was afraid of vampires?

"The Cullens. But they keep to themselves since everyone thinks they've moved away," he replied. Roisin looked back at him, her eyes wider.

"You mean… wait. But didn't the police chief's daughter marry one?" she asked. He nodded.

"Bella's one of them now too," he said. Roisin turned to look back in front of her, her mouth falling open in shock. "Why did you really move to Forks?"

"I already told you. Fresh start," she said. "Fae thing. We can't lie." Paul's eyes widened at that. She couldn't lie. None of them could. "And before you ask anything else, I think we should wait until we're all gathered. Then I'll answer your questions."

Paul just nodded.

"Okay…"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And… tada! The truth comes out! Hopefully in the next couple of days I can post the next chapter where we start getting more into background and things. And a plan to find Tara. Bringing together everyone on this one… Though I will say that I did struggle a bit with how the vampires react around fae – would fae magic affect them or not since they are technically dead and all. For some reason the wolves came to me more easily. Probably because they are technically still human.
> 
> Thanks for reading and following!


	19. Truth By Moonlight

Roisin couldn't help but pace as she waited for everyone to get settled in the great room. Sean and Cara had the party cleared out by the time they got back with the help of some of the solitary fae that had decided to stick around. She wasn't sure if it was curiousity or what, but probably wouldn't hurt to have them there. Pretty much all of the solitaries remained unseen, though, not completely trusting the large amount of wolves filling the room.

Sean now stood just behind Roisin with Cara, watching her closely. He wasn't completely happy that she had come out with their secret so willingly. But honestly, Roisin hadn't seen any way around it. They had seen her fight and knew she wasn't human. What's more, they also knew that Tara's disappearance wasn't an accident and the most important thing at the moment was finding her and getting her back.

Currently, they were waiting on someone. Jacob had made a call while they were walking back and told her to wait on explanations until they - whoever they were - got there.

And Paul, he stood off to the side with Jared, also watching her closely. He seemed to take the news rather well, she thought. But at the same time, she couldn't read his mind. For all she knew, he could be in shock or coming up with ways to break up with her right now.

Hopefully she would get some answers of her own before the night was over.

The doorbell rang, stopping her mid-pace as she looked over. Jacob trotted over and opened it, letting in two incredibly pale men. They looked vastly different save for their skin tone, which was deathly pale even compared to the Winter Court, and strange golden eyes. One had blonde hair and looked a bit older while the other had copper hair and looked as though he could have been in high school. However, Roisin felt like she didn't need an introduction. It was clear who this was.

So these were the famous Cullens. She had always wondered what vampires looked like in person.

"Sorry to keep you waiting," the blonde one said, his voice and face warm and kind. He walked over and held his hand out to Roisin. "Carlisle Cullen. This is my adopted son, Edward."

Roisin looked down at his hand and then back up at his face, hesitantly reaching out and taking his hand. It was ice cold. Roisin gasped and immediately let go, backing away frantically as ice-blue eyes suddenly filled her vision. She then felt Sean gripping her arms from behind.

"It's okay," he murmured softly in her ear. "It's a vampire thing, remember."

Roisin blinked a few times and looked back at Carlisle, his face full of worry that he had done something. She brushed it off, slightly embarrassed. _Keep your shit together, Ro,_ she warned herself.

"Sorry. I'm Roisin. And this is Sean, Cara and Mae," she said, pointing at the others as she stepped away from Sean. She looked over at Edward, finding him watching her with a mildly suspicious look. Jacob stood at his side, his expression equally as suspicious.

Okay, so they must be buddies or something. And well, she supposed she didn't blame them. They had been hiding something pretty big from them.

"Jacob says that you're fae. And you know who is behind the accident at First Beach," Carlisle said.

Roisin looked around the room, seeing everyone watching her expectantly - even the unseen fae. Looked like she was in charge of this rodeo. But she would have to speak carefully. The other fae didn't know who she truly was. And well, she wasn't sure she wanted the vampires and wolves to know.

They didn't need to know her past. Though she couldn't help but glance over at Paul. She wasn't ready to tell him everything. But after tonight, she might not have a choice.

"Like I told the others, it's fae," she said, meeting Carlisle's eyes.

"How?" Carlisle asked.

"Some fae enjoy taking humans," Roisin said, frowning. "The whole point of the party tonight was to lure them here. I did manage to catch up to it as it was trying to drag off another girl, but then the wolves showed up and it got away."

She kept her voice even, trying not to sound like she was blaming them. But she kind of was. If they hadn't shown up when they did, she could have overpowered the fae. Forced it to tell her everything. Could have found Tara. Roisin couldn't help but feel frustrated. Even if she had originally thought the party was a bad idea, it had worked and she was _this_ close. They had yet to find another break this big.

Carlisle didn't respond at first, only studied her a moment before his eyes shifted involuntarily to Sean, who was now standing next to her, his arms crossed in front of him. He was keeping things relatively tame, but part of being Shadow fae meant that most others felt some unease around him.

"I'm sorry, I don't mean to stare. Just… I've never seen your kind before," he said, smiling slightly. "I'm curious to learn more."

"What? Did you think we'd be tiny and flint around like birds?" Mae asked. Carlisle and Edward turned to look at her as Roisin sighed.

Mae rose from the couch where she had been sitting in between Quil and Embry, allowing her glamour to slide away as orange wings opened up behind her. Her ears became pointed as she seemed to glow with an inhuman light. Embry and Quil pushed back into the couch away from her wings as everyone else not fae visibly reacted. Mae just fluttered her wings, a smug look on her face.

"This more like it?" she asked.

"Mae, stop messing around," Roisin said tiredly. Mae just shrugged, sliding her glamour back on as she sat back down. "Others not like us, they only see what we want them to see. We can also go unseen - though not to our own kind."

To make her point, Roisin slipped out of sight, noting the looks of shock around the room. Only then did she fully turn to look at Paul, who was frowning in her direction. No, not frowning. It was as though he was straining to see her. Curious, she took a few steps forward. At first he didn't follow her movement, though his eyes seemed to catch something and shifted towards her.

Well… that was interesting. But not the time. Turning back to Carlisle, Riosin came back into sight.

"There have been fae coming to the mortal world pretty much for forever," she then said. "Though a vast majority live in the Fae world."

"Why come over here? Why take humans?" Jacob asked. "And why would they take _this_ person?"

Roisin winced as she looked away, chewing on her bottom lip. She had been asking herself the same question ever since she heard about the accident though she knew it was hopeless to try and apply logic to anything the fae did.

"To be honest, there probably isn't a reason," Sean said, keeping his expression neutral. "Unfortunately, us being here has attracted more fae to this area… this could have brought one that doesn't share our views or respect for mortals."

Mae snorted from the couch and Roisin found herself rolling her eyes yet again. Really could do without the color commentary.

"If you ask me, this is Shadow Court," Mae said, leveling a scowl at Sean.

"Mae," Roisin warned, really not wanting to launch into another of her rants right now.

"Oh, _come on_ , Ro! It's what they fucking do! You know what _they_ think about mortals. They pop over here, steal a few, and then take them back to torture or do goddess knows what else to them," Mae said. "Just ask Sean. He used to be one of them."

Everyone in the room turned to look at him, suspicion starting to enter some of their eyes. Roisin really wished Mae hadn't brought that up - Sean wasn't like that. But at the same time, it would have come out eventually. Sean took a deep breath, glancing at Roisin.

"Right. So there are five courts in the Fae world - Summer, Winter, Autumn, Spring, Shadow… And Mae's right. I was part of the Shadow Court," he said. "But I left 500 years ago. Wasn't fond of their ways. And I haven't been back since."

"Sean has nothing to do with what's been going on," Roisin added. "I can vouch for him."

"What about you?" Jacob asked. "You part of this Shadow court, too?"

"Jake, stop," Sam said, sounding annoyed. Jacob shot him a dark look.

"I told you there was something weird going on here and you didn't believe me," he retorted. "And I'm right!"

"Yea, but you still got some of it wrong. _They_ aren't a danger," Sam pointed out.

"Yea, right…"

Roisin heard a growl and jumped slightly as she turned, noticing that Paul was now glaring daggers across the room at Jacob, his body shaking. Jared was trying to get him to calm down, looking ready to restrain Paul if necessary.

Okay, she wasn't sure if that was a wolf thing or a Paul thing...

"We still barely know anything about you," Jacob pushed.

Roisin took a deep breath and turned back to him. Seemed she was going to have to get more personal if she wanted Jacob to trust her.

"Mae and I were Summer Court," she said, feeling that was at least safe enough. "Like I said, we left for about the same reason Sean left Shadow. Didn't like their ways." She then shot a glare at Mae to keep her mouth shut. Thankfully, this time she obliged. "But none of that matters. Whoever is behind this, it's not us. To be honest, I really think you should let us handle this."

"Yea, like we're going to let you do that," Jacob said with a snort. "This is our territory, for the record, in case you forgot."

Roisin couldn't help but feel a wave of anger wash over her. It must have manifested into something because suddenly Jacob was backing up slightly and she could see sweat appearing on his forehead.

"Ro," Sean said in warning.

"Amazing," Carlisle said. "Did you do that?"

"Yea, happens sometimes when I get angry," Roisin said, brushing it off. She turned back to Jacob. "I don't think you understand. Fae are fast. Blink and they're gone. And they're strong. And they possess abilities that I'm not sure you can handle."

"Oh, we can handle it alright, Red. We keep up with vampires just fine when it comes to speed," he shot back, now walking towards her. "And we're strong, too. Heal fast. We've fought and killed vampires."

"Oh really?" Roisin asked, though she had to admit she was slightly impressed with the vampires bit. But she was tired, frustrated and Jacob was seriously starting to annoy her.

Suddenly she was behind him, giving him a hard shove. Jacob stumbled forward, nearly falling to the ground, though stopped himself and spun around. Roisin was already behind him, shoving him again. Jacob turned, but she had once again moved. She finally came to a stop right in front of him, her eyes blazing and her wings spread out behind her, allowing him a small view of what she truly looked like. His eyes went wide as he backed up.

"You won't even see us coming until we want you to," she said, her voice low with warning as she narrowed her eyes at him. She knew he could feel the power in her voice and saw the flames dancing in her eyes.

Just to further her point, she sent a wave of heat at him that had him stumbling.

"Ro! Enough!" Sean shouted.

She glanced over at him, and then suddenly everything returned to normal.

"Sorry," she said, directing it to Sean rather than Jacob as she walked over to stand next to the Shadow fae again.

"Okay… I understand why you might hesitate, but I honestly think working together is the best solution here," Carlisle said. Roisin didn't reply but glanced at Sean. "We know this area - where they could be hiding out. But you know fae. If we want to find the girl, and quickly, working together is our best option."

Roisin glanced at Sean again, whose dark eyes were scanning around the group. He then looked to her and gave her a short nod. To be honest, she wasn't sure if this was such a good idea, but it seemed they were going with it.

"I suppose we can try," she said, not wanting to agree outright. Carlisle looked pleased as he glanced at Sam.

"Right, so what else do we need to know?" Sam asked with a sigh. "Is there a chance this could be more than one fae?"

"Possibly," Roisin said. "But again, we're not sure…"

"If it comes to a fight, what should we do?" Jacob asked.

"Run," Mae said with a snort, getting dark looks from not only Roisin this time. "Sheesh, you guys have fragile egos."

"There's not much that can kill us unless you're strong enough... I've never fought a wolf before or heard of it, so... could be possible. Vampires, you could do some damage," Sean said. "But iron is deadly to weaker fae and can still severely wound the strongest. We stay away from it for the most part. Salt can help protect against some forms of fae magic."

"That's it?" Jacob asked.

"Never make a deal with a fae," Roisin found herself saying. "Fae can't lie, but they are very good at talking around the truth or twisting it. And deals are binding. You'll find it hard to get out of one."

A slight shiver went down her spine, but she shook it off. Now was not the time to think about that.

"I'd avoid fae wine as well. Unless that's your thing. If a mortal has too much, they can turn fae," Cara added. "Outside of that, it makes mortals more pliable…"

"How much is too much?" Carlisle asked, the intrigued look back on his face.

"Depends," Roisin said. She then remembered Embry's reaction. Looking at him, her eyes widened slightly. "And… I think we've already determined that it doesn't affect wolves the same."

"Wait… that's what I had at the party that made me sick?" he asked, looking at Mae, who wore a sheepish smile. She just shrugged.

"I told you that you might not like it," she said, looking away from him and taking a drink from her glass that seemed to have appeared from no where. Shit, was that fae wine? Roisin was going to ream her out for that later.

"Okay, so is there anything you can tell about the different kinds of fae? Like… if it is this Shadow… whatever," Jacob asked, somehow getting them back on track again.

"Shadow fae are brutal. Vicious. Death isn't always the endgame, just something that happens when they tire of you and you no longer hold any enjoyment for them," Sean said, his tone serious. "It never comes easily or swiftly. They can find your darkest fears and use it against you. Or… your darkest desires."

"Other courts?" Carlisle asked.

"Summer tends to be prideful and temperamental. Their power is connected to their emotions, which they feel strongly. They don't intend to be cruel, but they often can be," Sean said, glancing at Roisin. "I highly doubt that Autumn or Spring have anything to do with this. Too mellow. And I've never seen anyone from those courts in this world in the time I've been here. Nor have I seen any defect."

"What about Winter?" Sam asked. Roisin shuddered again, but tried to cover it.

"Those devoted to the court rarely leave the Fae world," Sean said. "They can be just as cruel, if not more so than the Shadow Court. Though they tend to kill first and ask questions later." He glanced at Roisin and then continued. "Whoever it is, it's more likely they are solitary… or… Shadow, though I tend to think it's a bored solitary."

Roisin really hoped they weren't dealing with any Shadow Court. But before she could think further on it, she felt a soft nudge on the edge of her mind. She had felt it a bit earlier, but in the midst of everything brushed it off. Now she couldn't ignore it. Looking to the floor, she shook her head. Then she was looking around the group, wondering who was causing it. Her eyes settled on Edward, who seemed to be straining on something.

"Stop it," she said, frowning at him. A surprised look came over his face. "What are you doing?"

"He can't help it," Carlisle said, glancing at Edward before looking back at Roisin. "But it seems that he can't read your mind."

"I can't read any of them," Edward said. "None of the fae."

Roisin closed her eyes, bringing her hands up to her temples. She suddenly felt incredibly tired and wanted this meeting to be over with. But she could tell that the wolves and vampires had more questions.

"Sean can take over for now. I need… I'll be back," she said, opening her eyes and walking out of the room into the kitchen.

She could hear conversations start up, with people calling out questions. But then she heard footsteps walking to the kitchen and she turned around, expecting Paul. But instead of him, Sean walked in behind her. Sighing, she leaned against the island as she saw some of his shadows leave their constant swirling around him and create a barrier in the doorway.

"You should tell them," he said, crossing his arms.

"Tell them what?" Roisin replied, knowing full well what he was talking about. Sean just stared at her. "We're not sure if my issues are involved," she said harshly. "If Summer found me, they would just take me. They wouldn't waste time messing around."

"We both know that Rian would do something like this," he said.

Roisin didn't say anything, looking away and trying to not to think about what the Winter Court would do if they got their hands on Tara - especially if they knew she was her friend. While not as creative as Shadow, they did like to inflict pain just as much.

"Rian hates the mortal world. We both know that. He wouldn't come here unless he was desperate and we both know how insanely patient he is," she said dryly. "This was too... messy for him. He'd put more thought into it. And he'd for damn sure let us know it was him."

"Okay, fair enough. But at the very least, you should talk to Paul about this," Sean replied. Roisin frowned. "I know that you care about him - more than you should, if you want my opinion. But he knows this much. If you are going to attempt to keep this… relationship... even just for the time being… you owe it to him to at least let him know what he's getting into."

"What if I don't want him to know?" she asked, looking over at him. Sean's stern look softened a bit.

"I know that you're afraid. And even though I know you'll try to deny it, you feel ashamed. But you shouldn't," Sean said. "And honestly, we've tried for years to find a loophole. Maybe… maybe we were meant to find the wolves. You were meant to meet him."

Roisin stared at him, too surprised to speak a moment. She hadn't thought about that and was surprised that Sean would go there. She looked towards the archway that led to the great room, hope starting to fill her. But then she shook her head.

"I don't know how that could help. You know what the prophecy says," she replied. "So they turn into wolves, how does that really help?"

"I don't know, but it's something to consider," Sean said softly. "And you know that I'll do it if you ask me to."

Roisin smiled softly. Sean would do just about anything to help her. Had, pretty much. But she couldn't ask this of him. Not when it could kill him.

"I'm grateful, but I won't put you at risk like that," she replied, once again refusing him. "We both know how Cathal is."

Sean nodded, knowing the king of the Shadow Court better than Roisin. He then walked over and gently placed his hands on her cheeks, leaning his forehead against hers, closing his eyes. Roisin took a deep breath, closing her eyes as well. She wasn't sure how she would have handled all of this without him.

"At the very least, you should be more open with Paul," he said softly.

Roisin opened her eyes, looking into Sean's. She then nodded.

"Yea. Okay," she said. He then stepped back and the barrier disappeared, the sounds from the living room now returning. "Guess there's no time like now…"

****

Paul had zoned out all the conversation around him. People were asking various questions that Cara was answering, along with some of the other fae that had apparently stuck around, randomly popping into sight that had everyone else jumping every now and again. He was left pacing in the corner of the room that he had retreated to.

He wanted to talk to Roisin - had even started after her - but then Sean had beat him. And for a moment, he figured it was probably better. But the imprint was still pulling him towards her. So, he figured he would follow them into the kitchen, but a dark wall of shadows blocked the way. Looking around told him that either no one else saw it or cared. Still, he couldn't ignore the pull. So he had slipped out one of the doors onto the verandah, planning to go into the kitchen from that door.

But then he had seen Sean and Roisin, their foreheads pressed together as the older fae gently held her face. For a moment, his heart dropped into his stomach. It then sank further when Roisin opened her eyes and smiled up at him.

Paul turned away, quickly making his way back into the great room, not sure what he had witnessed. He knew that they were close - Roisin had told him that much. Were they even related? Paul realized he had never actually heard her call him her uncle. Was there something going on between them? While he gathered his imprint was different because Roisin was fae, she could still very well reject it.

Taking a deep breath, Paul stopped pacing, seeing Roisin step out of the kitchen and stop, her eyes locking with his. She smiled slightly and then started directly for him, ignoring everything going on around them as his heart quickened. Already Paul felt better now that she was near.

She then took his hand and started towards her bedroom.

"I think we need to talk," she said, glancing up at him. He nodded.

Once they were inside, Roisin walked over and sat on the end of her bed, suddenly looking rather tired.

"I guess… do you have any questions for me?" she asked.

Paul blinked, for a moment surprised. He figured she would have a ton of questions for him. But in the midst of everyone learning about the fae, it might have slipped her mind. Or maybe she was giving him the first chance to talk.

"I have to admit… this is all…" he didn't finish the sentence, unsure of what he wanted to say anyway, as he ran his hand through his hair.

Roisin cracked a small smile and nodded, laughing softly.

"Yea, today has definitely been…" she said.

Seeing her smile had Paul relaxing as he walked over and sat next to her. He then looked down at her.

"So, you have wings," he said. Roisin snorted.

"Everything you've heard today and that's where you go," she replied, her smile growing. Paul shrugged.

"Can't see them now, but it was pretty hot," he said, causing her to laugh again.

"And you… you turn into a giant-ass wolf. Have to admit, that's pretty hot," she replied, raising an eyebrow at him as she looked him up and down, taking in his shirtless state. "So what makes you different from werewolves?"

"Uh, well, I've never met any, but I hear they can only shift on full moons and it's not voluntary. We can shift whenever we want. And like I said, it's genetic. Only certain lines in our tribe have it," he said. "We're not bitten or turned or anything. Born this way."

"Same with us, though… well, we can turn mortals into fae. But only through the fae wine - and a lot of it - or the goddesses can do it instaneously. But that rarely happens anymore, I don't think anyone has seen any of them in about a thousand years," she said with a sigh and grimace.

"Are these goddesses like… your deities or something?" he asked.

"They're the most powerful fae, yes. According to our legends, they were the first fae and created us. But they keep to themselves… mostly," she replied.

He knew there was more there she wasn't telling him - it was clear by the look on her face - but she wasn't keen to talk about it. And least for now.

"So… how long do you guys live?" he asked. Roisin glanced up at him.

"We're immortal," she said. "Though you _can_ kill us. Like Sean said, iron does the trick. And a fae can kill another fae. We've had wars where a ton of fae were killed…"

She drifted off for a moment, and Paul began to wonder just what sort of things she had seen. It was as though a dark cloud had settled over her as she furrowed her brow, seeming to get lost in her memory. He put his arm around her, pulling Roisin closer. She looked up at him at the contact, her eyes wide. She then shook her head and smiled.

"What about you?" she asked. Paul took a deep breath and slowly let it out.

"As long as we're phasing, we don't age. And as long as there are vampires around, we keep phasing - I mean, that is basically our whole purpose for shifting. To protect the tribe and all from vampires - bad vampires anyway. The Cullens, they don't kill people. They get their blood from animals. I guess we could technically live forever as long as there are leeches around," he said, noting that Roisin's eyebrows rose at this news. "But the Cullens are planning to leave in about 6 years. Once they're gone, as long as no others move into the area, then I guess we stop phasing and return to normal."

"Oh," Roisin said, looking away.

"But… they really like it here, so they might not leave," Paul added, not sure why he said that. The Cullens had every intention of leaving as soon as Nessie was grown. And then he would return to being a normal human. Would grow old. Die someday. Shit, this was not what he needed to be thinking about right now.

She glanced at him and nodded, leaning her head against his shoulder.

"So, your body temp and appetite - that a wolf thing?" she asked.

"Yea. And apparently your little heat blasts are because you're Summer fae?" he asked.

"Yes, well… I'm solitary now," she said.

Paul looked down at her, seeing her seem to struggle with something. He pulled her closer, letting her know he was here and would accept whatever she said. Maybe she would finally tell him who was looking for her.

"Mae and I, we actually ran away." She glanced at him. "Things were… not good. And I couldn't stand to be there any longer. Mae's always been my best friend - we grew up together - so she came with me. But that's who might be looking for me. Summer Court."

"Why?" Paul couldn't help but asked. Roisin shrugged.

"I've got something they want," she said. "But it doesn't matter because I never intend to go back."

Paul was silent a bit, letting the information sink in. He felt like there was more, for some reason.

"Okay. So… I take you and Mae, and you and Sean… you're not really related," Paul continued, though even he heard the strain in his voice. God, did he really have to sound like a jealous idiot right now?

Roisin looked over at him, her eyebrows raised. She nodded.

"He's not my uncle. He found us wandering around London with just the clothes on our backs. No money. No idea on how to survive in the mortal world, even though we had both been over several times before that. He had already been here for about 400 years, so he took us in. Taught us what we needed to know," she said. "He's become like a brother to me."

Paul felt the tension start to leave his body. Okay, that was one mystery solved. He didn't have to worry about Sean.

"How bad was it? That you would want to run away?" he asked, his protective instincts kicking into gear.

Roisin swallowed and looked away from him.

"I can't lie to you - it was… bad things happened," she said. "But… I'm not ready to get into the details, if that's okay. Just… I'm okay here. I'm safe here." She looked back at him, tears glistening in her eyes. "I'm happy and safe… with you."

Paul couldn't breath for a moment. It was the words that he wanted to hear. Finding out the truth about each other, it pretty much had turned his world upside down, but Paul still held on to one constant.

Roisin was his imprint and he wouldn't leave her side. He didn't care that she was fae - though to be honest, he thought it was pretty fucking amazing - and his feelings for her hadn't changed at all. If anything, they perhaps got stronger. But he wasn't upset that she had kept secrets from him. He had done the same - was still keeping one pretty big one.

"I'm happy to hear that," he said. "And I'm not going anywhere."

"Even if I accidentally hit you with a heat blast or knock you out when I lose my temper?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. "I burned down a building once. Still debatable if that was an accident."

Paul found himself laughing. It seemed he had finally met his match.

"To be honest, we're… not that different. I've got a bad temper as well, if you remember. Sometimes I end up getting so angry that I shift without meaning to, but I'm working on it. And I thought you were pretty awesome when you went after Jacob - both in the woods and here," Paul replied with a chuckle. "And we heal pretty fast, so any damage you may manage to make isn't going to stay for long."

"Really?" Roisin asked, seeming intrigued by this.

She reached for his arm that wasn't around her and grabbed it. Paul hissed slightly when he felt white-hot pain. But just as he did, she let go and he looked down, seeing a clear handprint in his skin, though the skin was raised and slightly red. They both watched as it slowly started fading away.

"Still hurts a little, but see?" he said, turning back to her. Roisin smiled and leaned forward, pressing a kiss to his lips.

"Guess this means I don't have to go easy on you anymore," she said, grinning a bit deviously.

"What do you-"

Suddenly, Paul was on his back, the wind rushing out of his lungs as he stared up at Roisin leaning over him, the grin still firmly in place. Damn, she was fast. He tried to push her away, but she didn't budge. Okay, she was a hell of a lot stronger, than he thought.

Suddenly, his body caught up to what was going on, though his brain tried to remind himself that the others were just on the other side of the door.

"Ro," he started, but she cut him off with her lips, heat coursing into his body from her.

For a moment, he forgot himself as his hands reached up for her, gripping her waist and yanking her closer so that they were fully touching. One hand became tangled in her hair as a soft moan formed in his throat.

All too soon, she was lifting away from him, still smiling. Paul shook his head slightly, a bit dazed.

"Ah… so it would seem our allure still works on you," she joked.

"What?" he asked, confused.

"Mortals are really attracted to us. Guess it works a bit more strongly on you… Come on, we don't get back out there and they really will think we're up to no good in here," she said, crawling off him and standing at the end of the bed.

Sighing, Paul sat up and then stood as well, looking down at her a moment. She winked and turned to the door, Paul at her side. Just as she opened the door, he reached down and took her hand. Roisin paused a moment, looking down at their hands and then back up at him, a brilliant smile on her face.

This was going to be okay, Paul could feel it. Everything was going to be okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I realized I left you guys on a bit of a cliffhanger. I had initially meant to post the last chapter and this chapter together but didn't want to get ahead of myself. But I think a lot of questions (but not everything – and well, I created a few more) are answered in this chapter, so even though I haven't finished writing Chapter 23 yet, I thought I would go ahead and post it.
> 
> And I'm kind of glad that I didn't post it the other night with everything else. This one needed A LOT of work, even though I had gone through and edited it several times. I spent hours cleaning it up today, realizing that it was really all over the place. And well, I've rewritten parts so many times that for some reason, I keep forgetting what I've kept so every time I sit down to write, I have to go back a few chapters to read, and then I get editing, and yea… that's why Chapter 23 is taking me so long to finish…
> 
> Anywho…
> 
> Thanks for reading everyone! I'm done posting/writing my other story so focusing solely and completely on this one right now. I'm so close to finishing up all the writing – far closer than I realized, actually… I mean, it's only 31 chapters with the prologue (plus two short bonus chapters that will go up only on AO3 since they get a bit *cough* mature…) but I'm almost done with Chapter 23 and have one bonus chapter and part of a later chapter half written. So… 8 and a half chapters left to write? I thought I had more to go…


	20. Trip Around the Sun

Paul sighed as he rubbed his face, his mind reeling a bit still.

His imprint and girlfriend was fae. Had wings. Was the embodiment of summer as far as he was concerned with flames that danced in her eyes. Her uncle and cousin were not actually her uncle and cousin, but rather other fae who had followed her after she ran away from the Summer Court. A court that was still after her for reasons yet unknown.

A lot of things were starting to make sense now that he knew the truth about Roisin.

After they had gone back to the meeting last night, they went through a few different options on how to handle the current situation. Roisin seemed to believe Tara was still alive somewhere, which Sean agreed with though from the grim looks on their faces, it wasn't likely that anything good was happening to her, depending on who took her. The fae seemed to be at odds over just who could be behind it. Mae was insistent it was Shadow. Roisin seemed to be leaning this way, though Sean seemed sure it was solitary and had brought up Winter again.

Roisin visibly reacted everytime this suggestion came up. Which confirmed there was a lot more she wasn't telling him, though he now had a bit of an understanding about why she had a panic attack at the movie. He felt very strongly that whatever bad things had happened to her that she didn't want to talk about, they must be related to this Winter Court. And even though she had told him the Summer Court was after her, he still had questions. What did she have that Summer - and possibly Winter - Court would want?

In the midst of all of it, he had yet to tell her about the imprint. He wanted to, but with everything going on, Paul felt like it wasn't necessarily the right time - not in front of everyone. And not when they needed to figure out how to save Tara, which Roisin was vehement about.

The three groups of supernatural beings had talked late into the night and he wanted to stay over again, but Sam ordered him to go home. He did need the sleep, and it was probably a good idea to have some time apart to process everything - he was pretty sure Ro was reeling as well. But he didn't want to be away from her for too long.

At least they were still together, her plan to break things off at the very least temporarily put on hold while they figured out how to get Tara back. It seemed like they intended to stick around long enough to accomplish that.

And now he was here, sitting on his couch, staring at the coffee table as everything settled in his mind. Sam had left some of the other pack members who were less tired to watch over Roisin's house, though Paul wondered if they even needed it. Apparently Roisin was more than capable of looking after herself. Just what else could she do?

Paul looked up as Jared walked into the house, a grin on his face.

"You look pleased," Paul said dryly.

"Well, yea. Everything is good now! You know Roisin's secret - which, let me say, holy shit. But she knows yours too. Everything can move forward like it should," Jared said as he plopped down in the recliner. Paul grimaced. "You did tell her everything, didn't you? You guys were in her room for a spell…"

"We talked about most things," Paul started.

"Are you serious?! You didn't tell her about the imprint?!" Jared nearly exploded.

"Didn't seem like the time. We were both processing the fact that neither of us are completely human. Well, she's not human at all. And then there's everything with Tara," Paul said, frowning. "But I do plan on telling her soon."

"Better. Because it sounds like Sean wants to hightail it out of town once this is resolved," Jared said.

Paul stared down at his hands. He had hoped now that everything was in the open - mostly - that they would change their minds and stay. But just because he knew what they were and they knew he was a wolf didn't necessarily change anything, now that he thought about it. Roisin was still on the run from the Summer Court.

And Paul knew if they left, there was no way he was staying behind. Granted, that would be a lot easier if they knew the full truth about the imprint.

"You're going with them, aren't you?" Jared said. "If they leave and go off somewhere else, you won't stay here." Paul looked over at him, cracking a smile.

"Can't very well let my imprint go running off without me, can I?" he asked.

Jared's eyes were wide, but really, he should have expected that. All the wolves knew how painful it could be to be separated from an imprint. Paul wasn't about to let go of Roisin, even if she had a court full of tempermental, heat-wielding fae after her. Though he wasn't sure just how he was going to convince Sean that he needed to go with them. Maybe he should shift in front of them and show them just what he could do. Prove that he was capable of helping protect Roisin.

"True," Jared said. "And I guess we know why your imprint was so intense."

Paul nodded slowly, going over everything since the day he met Roisin in his mind. All the things he had seen and experienced around her. It made sense, though he really wanted to talk to Roisin about it more. Compare. He wondered just how the imprint had affected her.

"And why I keep thinking of summer when I'm around her," he commented. He took a deep breath and slowly let it out. "So much for no more supernatural catastrophes…"

"Got that right," Jared said, suddenly looking rather serious. "So how are we supposed to track down a fae that has no scent to us? And why can't we smell it?"

Paul frowned. It was the one question that no one seemed to understand. And it was strange. Everything had a scent. He could smell Roisin - well, that was obvious. She was his imprint. And Mae and Sean's scents were all over the house along with the other solitary fae as well. But this one… it made no sense.

"You think it knows about us? That's why it masked its scent?" he asked, looking over at Jared. His best friend shrugged.

"First time I've come across something like this. Maybe," Jared said. "But there's a lot about fae we don't know. And what we do know, it's not like they had a ton of explanations. How are we supposed to use salt to protect us from fae magic?"

"Dunno. Throw it at them?" Paul said, frowning. "But looks like I need to go back over today and get some answers."

"And preferably tell Ro that she's your imprint," Jared added.

"Yea, that too," Paul said, though he felt a small spike of nerves. After everything that had happened last night, he wasn't completely sure why he was so anxious about telling her.

Roisin had accepted that he was a wolf. Still wanted to be with him. So why was he struggling with this bit? Was it because of everything else that came with it?

Paul's eyes widened slightly. He knew it happened like that sometimes. Jared had declared his undying love for Kim not long after they had imprinted and gotten together. Same with Sam and Emily. But for some reason, he still wasn't prepared for it. Despite the fact that he had been falling for Roisin from the day he met her. He gulped slightly.

He wasn't ready to tell her _that_. Even with the imprint, it felt too fast. Too much. But then again, nothing about this situation was normal. Hell, imprinting wasn't normal. But here they were.

He, Paul Lahote, was falling in love with a Summer fae named Roisin.

****

"How you doing, kid?" Sean asked softly from the door to Roisin's room.

She looked up at him from where she had been lost in thought pacing in front of her bed, her eyes wide. She then sighed and shrugged. Sean walked over and sat down on her bed, his dark eyes fixed on her.

"I don't know," she said softly as she turned to him, frowning. "I mean, everything with Paul and the others… that I can handle. We've always known about others out there. And it is good to have help. But… I was so close to getting this fae - it was within my reach. I would have found where Tara was…"

"Hey, you managed to save Sarah," Sean replied. "And there's no telling what would have happened…"

"I know what would have happened. I would have taken it down and forced it to tell me where she is," Roisin snapped, her eyes flashing.

"You should have still told us you were following it," Sean said, frowning at her. Roisin glanced at him sheepishly. "And we still don't know who's behind this. They could have overpowered you."

"This coming from the fae who is constantly reminding me of how strong I am," she said halfheartedly.

"You are strong, but again, we know nothing about _this_ fae," he pushed.

"Other than it apparently has no scent," she muttered. "Any clues on that?"

"Nope," Sean said, his frown deepening. "It's obviously masking it, which makes me think it might know about the wolves…"

The two sat in contemplative silence a few moments, thinking over everything they knew. Roisin glanced at Sean nervously.

"I think Mae could be right," she said softly. "The more I think about it, this does seem like Shadow fae."

"But why, Ro? Why would they bother coming here?" he asked, his voice strained.

Roisin didn't respond at first, knowing that he was struggling with the notion that anyone in the Shadow Court could possibly be messing around in the town where they just so happened to have settled. For centuries they had left him alone, only ever coming into contact with Roisin just after she had left the Summer Court. But that had been Cathal courting her and she hadn't mentioned at the time that she was with Sean. However, Roisin knew that just because Cathal had left them alone didn't mean the Shadow king hadn't been watching them. Thankfully he hated Rian and her family just as much as she did, so she never worried about him ratting her location out to them.

But this… he was cruel enough. Roisin could definitely see him taking one of her friends in order to force her into a deal that would benefit the Shadow Court.

"Because of us. Or maybe specifically me," she replied simply. "You know what he's been after… Honestly, we should have expected him to do something by now." She frowned. "Goddess, this is all because of me. Maybe we shouldn't have come to Forks."

If they had never come here, Tara would be safe. Megan wouldn't have gotten hurt. Everything would have continued on here as normal if they hadn't arrived, bringing all sorts of trouble with them.

But then she wouldn't have met Paul.

Roisin was a bit shocked that she would think about him right now - there were bigger, more important things to focus on than her boyfriend. Or what his being a wolf meant for them. But yet, there he was, wiggling his way to the forefront of her mind, even though she was still extremely worried about Tara and determined to find her and bring her back.

"You shouldn't blame yourself, Ro," Sean said. She just gave him a dubious look. "There have been wolves and vampires here long before we arrived. I'm beginning to think this area is some sort of supernatural catnip. Even if we hadn't come, something was bound to happen, fae or otherwise."

Roisin rolled her eyes, but then stopped, thinking it over. She vaguely remembered Paul mentioning something about weird deaths - the hikers. Her eyes widened as she put two and two together, realizing that it probably wasn't bears like he had said. They became wolves to protect this area from vampires. Meaning at some point in the last couple of years, there had been bad vampires here. And they had killed people.

Okay, so maybe even if they had never come here, something strange would have happened regardless. Still didn't lessen her guilt.

"We're going to find Tara and bring her home," Sean continued. "And then we're going to figure a way to get everyone off your back."

"You make it sound so simple," she said, a rueful smile on her face. "Like we haven't spent the last 100 years trying to find an out."

"Yea, well, the last 100 years we didn't have vampires and wolves working with us, did we?" Sean replied. Roisin snorted.

What difference would that make?

"You honestly think they can help with the prophecy?" she asked him, not quite seeing the logic in it. The two groups hadn't even known that fae existed before last night even though the fae had long heard of their existence. Well, vampires at least.

"Never hurts to have a fresh pair of eyes," he said. "Yea, they don't know much about us, our ways, our history, but that could be a benefit. They could look at it without centuries of fae bias clouding their thoughts."

Roisin was silent. Could she tell them - the wolves and the vampires? Maybe she didn't have to share all of it. Because she was pretty sure if she told Paul the full truth, he would want to kill Rian and even though he was a wolf, she didn't want to think about how that fight would go.

Not to mention, she didn't want everyone to know what had happened. That was her cross to bear alone.

"Possibly," Roisin admitted, the only thing she wanted to say on the matter at the moment. "For now, my biggest concern is finding Tara. Is Cara back yet?"

"No, but she said she would be back later tonight. Wanted to check in with a few more fae that she knows," he replied. Roisin nodded.

"Hopefully she finds something," she said. They both remained silent, one thought heavy in the air.

What if this wasn't Shadow fae? What if it was Winter?

"Ro… I'll do everything I can," Sean said, knowing where her thoughts were going.

"I know," she said softly, hoping he didn't say anything more on it.

"SEAN! RO!"

They both turned to look towards her open door, waiting for Mae to appear. As soon as she did, Sean stood.

"I'll go… check on stuff," he said before walking past Mae and leaving the two friends alone.

Mae was immediately at her side, sitting down and wrapping her arms around Roisin.

"I know this is hard, but we'll find her," Mae said.

"Thanks," Roisin replied, appreciating the fact that her best friend was fully on her side with this. She hated fighting with her. Mae then let go and sat back.

"So, Ro… I've been thinking… maybe it's time we go home," Mae said. Roisin immediately frowned.

She knew it wasn't Mae's fault. She hadn't been completely forthcoming on the real reason why she wanted to leave. And she knew Mae missed the Fae world. But she was still taken aback. Roisin thought she had told her enough that she would understand.

"Mae… I don't want to go back," she said softly.

She could see Mae was fighting her frustration a bit. But she took a deep breath, keeping her features smooth.

"I'm sure your parents will forgive you, if that's what you're worried about," she said. "They love you, Ro."

"That's not what I'm worried about," Roisin said, looking away.

"If this is about Rian, you could do a lot worse, in my opinion," Mae said with a bit of a snort. Roisin looked at her, feeling her anger starting to rise, but she fought it off as best she could.

Mae didn't know. She didn't want her to know.

"You don't know him," she said, her voice barely a whisper. "Not like I do." Mae stared at her a moment, her eyes hardening slightly.

"You know, I'm sick and tired of you saying that. And Sean," she said with a huff, pushing up off the bed. "When you're ready to tell me just why, you know where I'll be."

She then left the room.

Roisin sighed and rubbed her face, then threw herself back on her bed. Shit. How had this gotten so complicated?

****

When Paul had asked if he could come over that night, he had been hoping that it would be just him and Roisin. He needed to tell her about the imprint after all, and really didn't want an audience. But when she answered the door that night, he could hear Mae and Sean arguing in the kitchen about something completely unrelated to what was going on. For a moment, he thought maybe they would go to her room, but instead Roisin led him straight to the kitchen, declaring they had just finished cooking dinner.

So much for that. But maybe after dinner. And well, it wouldn't hurt to get more familiar with Mae and Sean, as Paul was fully intending to leave Forks with the fae when that day came.

He followed her into the kitchen and found Mae and Sean sitting at a table in a room just off the main kitchen that he hadn't noticed before, a ton of food spread out that had his mouth watering.

"Wanted to make sure we made enough," Roisin said, smiling at him.

As soon as they walked in, the argument died out, with Mae smiling brightly and Sean shooting her an annoyed look before smiling at Paul. Seemed as though it hadn't been a serious argument, whatever it was. He sat down with Roisin, feeling as though this was going to be awkward, though he wasn't completely sure why.

"So, Paul. Now that we know you're a wolf, do you have fleas?" Mae asked.

"Seriously, Mae?" Roisin snapped.

Mae just shrugged and reached for a wine glass full of shimmery, gold liquid, that Paul now assumed was this fae wine. She turned her eyes to him as though she was waiting on an answer.

"No," he said.

"Had to ask. Thought _you_ might like to know since you're sharing a bed with him," Mae said before taking a generous sip as she looked at Roisin.

"As I recall, you once hooked up with a banshee. Tell us, how did that go?" Sean shot back smoothly.

Paul nearly spit out the water he had been drinking as Mae glowered across the table at Sean and Roisin barely contained her laughter. What the hell?

"Amazing, since you ask," Mae shot back, though she grimaced. "Until she started screaming… But that just means I was doing _something_ right. What about you, Sean? Ever made someone scream so loud they broke the windows?"

Okay, this was not the conversation Paul was expecting when he came over here tonight. He wasn't sure if he was more shocked by the fact they were currently comparing sexual escapades or that banshees were apparently real as well.

"There was that opera singer in Austria," he replied, a sly smile on his face. Mae rolled her eyes.

"Cara know about that?" she asked haughtily.

"Yea, she was there," Sean shot back with a smug smile.

Roisin snorted at the look on Mae's face, though Paul was now shoveling food into his mouth, hoping no one asked him anything. He wasn't the kiss-and-tell type - well besides the pack telepathy, but he hadn't wanted to share anything through that - and had a feeling that nothing he had done in his life would compare to the fae. But, he supposed if these were the people he was about to spend the rest of his life around, he should get used to it. He snuck a glance at Roisin, half wanting to know about her and half not.

Apparently Mae saw the look, because a coy smile came over her face as she set her sights on Roisin.

"Nope. Uh-uh," Roisin said, sitting up in her chair. "Don't go there, Mae."

"Please, if Paul is really serious about this, he has a right to know," Mae said, an impish smile on her face. "Your 67th birthday."

Roisin groaned and shook her head.

"Nope," she said. "No. I thought we agreed to never mention it again."

Okay, now Paul was a bit intrigued.

"I never agreed to that… It was 1924 and we were in New York City," Mae said. Roisin shot her a glare. "And we had just finished watching Josephine Baker, the famous burlesque dancer, perform..."

Paul couldn't help that his mouth dropped open. He knew that Roisin had been alive a long time, but it was still shocking to hear stories about it. Shit, she had been alive in 1924. Living in New York City at the time. His gaze fell on her, her cheeks now red as she looked across the table.

"Do not finish that story," Roisin said, glaring at Mae, who was now giggling madly. Even Sean was smiling slightly. Now Paul was curious. Roisin looked at him. "It was the Roaring 20s. We ended up at a speakeasy. Things happened. End of story." Sean snorted.

"Things happened," he said. "That's one way to put it." Roisin glared at him.

"Was this the club you accidentally burned down?" Paul asked. A bit of an uncomfortable silence fell over the table.

"Nope, but we did meet Charlie Chaplin that night," Mae said quickly. She then flashed a smile at Roisin and waggled her eyebrows. "Some of us got to know him better than others."

"Oh my goddess," Roisin muttered, and suddenly Mae and Sean were laughing again. Paul noted to himself to never ask about the club burning down again. "For the last time, I did NOT sleep with Charlie Chaplin!"

"We know. But doesn't mean other things didn't happen," Sean replied slyly, causing Roisin's cheeks to flood with color.

"Oh, shut up, Mr. Let's-See-if-I-Can-Seduce-N*Sync," Roisin scoffed.

"Wasn't for a lack of trying," he replied with a shrug. "At least I got four out of five."

"Wait, what?" Paul asked as Sean smirked at him. "But they're…"

"You'd be surprised just what some people are into when they're around Shadow fae," Sean said, reaching for his wine glass and winking at Paul. The wolf couldn't help but cast a worried look towards Sean. "Don't worry. You're off limits. Roisin would take my head off if I messed with you."

"Can we please talk about something else? This is not why I invited Paul for dinner," Roisin groaned.

"I'm fine," Paul said, smiling at her and then looking over at Mae and Sean. "What other embarrassing stories do you have about Roisin?"

Mae and Sean looked at each other, the two of them seeming positively gleeful about teaming up against Ro as the fae in question glared at them and then Paul.

"Beatles. 1961. Blue Gardenia Club," the two said at the same time. Roisin's eyes went wide as the color first drained from her face and then came rushing back in. The temperature in the room rose a few notches as she narrowed her eyes at the two.

What the hell happened with the Beatles?

"You - the minotaur in Greece," she retorted, pointing at Mae. The grin fell off her face quickly. Sean laughed. "And you - two words. Carrot Top." Sean whipped his head over to stare at her, eyes wide.

"Point taken, no more embarrassing stories," Sean said, shooting up from his chair and walking into the kitchen for a bottle of wine that was sitting on the island.

"Agreed," Mae said.

Roisin looked pretty pleased with herself as she sat back in her chair and started eating again.

"Wait, so I don't get to know what happened with the Beatles?" Paul asked. Roisin shook her head. He leaned over, putting on the smoothest smirk he could muster. "Really? You won't tell me?"

Roisin's eyes widened slightly as she stared into his eyes, her cheeks slowly turning pink. She didn't speak, just shook her head. Paul glanced down at her lips and then met her eyes, licking his lips as he leaned closer.

"Please?" he asked. Roisin gulped and shook her head again, her jaw clenched shut. Paul reached out and put his hand on her thigh, squeezing slightly. "Come on, Ro…"

"I… no… Won't say it," she said, fighting with her words. "Too embarrassing…"

"But I want to know everything about you," Paul said. Roisin blinked rapidly as her cheeks turned bright red.

"Fuck no," she said before she shot out of her chair and ran out of the kitchen.

Paul watched her go, slightly surprised by her reaction, as Mae howled in laughter. He hadn't thought he had done anything that warranted her running off. Just how bad was the story?

"What did you do to her?" Sean asked. Paul looked over at him.

"I didn't do anything. Just, you know, natural charm," he replied, finding the question odd as he chuckled nervously. Sean continued studying him.

"No… you were doing something," he said. "Though I guess you didn't realize it." He looked back towards where Roisin had disappeared. "Interesting…"

Paul gulped slightly and then returned to eating, wondering just what the hell had happened. Maybe it was the imprint. He had already gathered that it was different with him and Roisin.

"I'll be back…" Sean said, already leaving the room.

Paul watched him go and then looked over, finding Mae now seated in the chair next to him, causing him to jump and nearly fall out of his chair.

"Shit, little warning there, Mae," he said, frowning slightly. She only tilted her head to the side.

"You're not so bad," she said.

"I… thanks?" Paul replied, not sure where she was going with this.

"But… someday, we are going back to the Fae world," she stated. Paul didn't reply, just blinked a few times. Roisin had very distinctly told him she didn't want to go back. And fae couldn't lie. "And you can't come with us."

"What are you trying to do, Mae?" he asked, feeling confused but angry. Just when he thought they had made amends and all. Exactly what problem did Mae have with him anyway?

"Just felt like you deserved to know," she said lightly, standing from her chair. "This has an expiration date, so enjoy it while it lasts."

Paul just watched as she skipped out of the kitchen, too stunned to speak at the abrupt turn the night seemed to take. Everything had seemed fine until he managed to apparently do something to Roisin. Then this little display. There was no way it was true. Roisin didn't want to go back. He knew this. But.. fae couldn't lie. So Mae was obviously telling the truth. Or well, the truth that she believed. But how did this affect Roisin?

Suddenly feeling constricted and closed in, Paul stood from the table and headed to the door that led out to the backyard. Maybe a short run around the house to check the perimeter would help.

****

"I do not need a cold shower!" Roisin shouted as she and Sean walked into the kitchen, the Shadow fae chuckling. She then came to a stop, frowning slightly as she saw the empty table. "Where is everyone?"

"Maybe he got worried? You did rush out rather quickly," Sean said, looking at her and barely containing a smirk. Roisin rolled her eyes.

Wasn't her fault that her wolf boyfriend affected her in ways that had her _this_ close to ripping his clothes off in front of Mae and Sean. Or telling him every little secret she had. She didn't even know wolves could do that.

She walked over and saw that he hadn't finished his food, then heard a howl from outside. Roisin walked over to the window and peered out, but only saw the empty yard and surrounding forest.

"Guess he needed to go shift," she murmured.

"Hmm. Come on. Let's finish eating," Sean said.

Roisin sighed and walked back to the table where she sat. Picking up her fork, she glanced out the window again before turning her focus back to the food. He'd be back soon enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so the last section of this chapter where Paul goes over for dinner – totally unplanned when I was working on the chapter. Realized it was too short and I needed something, so thought I'd have Paul over to learn more about fae stuff (and needed a moment where Mae tells him that they're going back to the Fae world at some point – that's definitely a plot point). And then the ridiculous conversation that ensues happened. And I make no apologies. I had fun with it and felt we needed a lighthearted moment in there. And well, I kinda like having the fae more fluid with their sexuality – especially Summer and Shadow, which I think I mentioned before in one of the first party chapters that they were very much more in open with that. At least they're more sexual than other courts. Though honestly, I could make that a fae thing and not just a court thing, now that I think about it…
> 
> And I just finished writing Chapter 24 – which I was super excited to get into and so happy with how it turned out. Gah, I need to write more so I can post more… But it's now my bedtime and I have to get up at 5:30 am, so… hopefully tomorrow I can write enough that I can post the next two chapters – just so I don't leave you guys on another cliffhanger…
> 
> Thanks everyone for reading and following!


	21. Cruel Summer

Paul hadn't intended to stay out patrolling around the house all night. Really, he hadn't. But Jared had been there and the two got to discussing the odd moment with Mae. Once Paul had calmed down (and Jared threatened to kick his ass more than once) he went back to the house, but it was beyond late and Roisin was already asleep.

So, he had crawled into bed next to her and passed out almost as soon as his head hit the pillow.

The next morning, he woke up to find Roisin once again in his arms, her blue eyes staring into his as she smiled softly.

"You're kinda cute when you sleep, you know?" she asked. Paul chuckled.

"Some people find watching other people sleep weird, you know?" he replied.

"Do _you_ find it weird?" she asked.

"Not when it's you," he answered. He then leaned down and kissed her.

Really, he only intended for it to be a quick, good morning kiss. But he couldn't help it if his imprint kissed him in such a way that he temporarily forgot everything. Wait… wasn't there something he was supposed to do this morning?

The imprint. Right.

"Ro-"

He tried to push her off him, but she only smirked before pouncing again, a fire lighting up inside Paul as soon as her lips touched his. For a few moments, all he could think about was pulling her closer. Feeling all of her. His fingers tangled in her hair. And they were wearing too many clothes.

But somehow, a small part of his rational side broke through, reminding him yet again that he needed to tell her. Not waste the morning making out or whatever came next. Okay, well, he had hoped there would be this too. But he needed to tell her before he chickened out or gave into the flames that were currently attempting to consume him.

"Ro, I need to tell you something," he said as he pushed her back slightly, panting. She frowned and started towards him again, but he managed to hold her off. "It's important."

She didn't respond, only tilted her head to the side, a look of confusion still on her face.

"I've been meaning to tell you since you found out that I'm a wolf. You see, we have this thing-"

"Figured this would be how I found you."

Both Roisin and Paul turned their heads, seeing a young man who looked not that much older than them standing in front of the door that led from her bedroom to the verandah, dressed in odd clothing. In fact, he looked a lot like Roisin. But that didn't necessarily mean he wasn't a threat. Especially with the way his blue eyes were boring into the two of them. And how quickly he had appeared. That and the fact Paul could hear his heartbeat told him the intruder had to be fae.

Roisin quickly scrambled off Paul as they both sat up. Paul then yanked the comforter aside as he stood, glaring at him as he placed himself in front of Roisin, not giving any shits that he was currently standing in his boxers. If the fae was a threat, then he would take him down completely naked if he had to.

"Who are you?" he demanded, his hands clenching into fists at his sides.

The fae managed to look mildly amused, a small smirk appearing as he looked Paul up and down, then directed his gaze to Roisin, almost as though he was completely dismissing him.

"Your new plaything?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"He's not a plaything," Roisin said, her voice harsh as she was suddenly at Paul's side, causing him to jump slightly. God, he still wasn't used to how quickly the fae moved. "What do you want, Darraugh?"

She stepped forward, putting herself slight in front of Paul. Almost as though she was trying to protect _him_. He shook his head and then turned his attention to whoever this Darraugh was.

He had the same shade of slightly wavy red hair. The same smattering of freckles and sun-kissed skin. Though he was shorter and smaller than Paul, he carried himself in a way that oozed confidence, his hands calmly folded behind his back and his chin slightly up.

"You ask a question you already know the answer to," he replied dryly. "It's time to come home."

"Like hell. I'm not going back," Roisin nearly growled, her eyes narrowing. Darraugh only rolled his eyes.

"Look, you've had your fun. Mother and Father have allowed… _this_ … to go on as long as it can, but it is time to return and fulfill your duties. Rian has shown far more patience than you deserve," he drawled.

To say Paul was confused about what was happening would be an understatement. What did Rian have to do with anything? And holy shit, her parents were still alive? Well, now that he thought about it, he had only assumed they were dead because Roisin never talked about them.

"I'm not going back with you," she spat, beginning to visibly shake. "You may be crown prince, but you're not king yet. And I left the Summer Court, renounced it, so you can't order me around anymore."

"Believe it or not, but I did come here as your brother, not your future regent. If I had intended to treat you as a subject, I would have sent my guards. We both know how much you adore them," Darraugh said dryly.

Paul's eyes widened as what Darraugh said hit him. This was Roisin's brother - which now made perfect sense considering how much they looked alike - but he was the crown prince. Meaning Roisin was…

"I see you have not mentioned any of this to your mortal, have you?" Darraugh said, a hint of malice in his voice.

Paul met his gaze, once again glaring as he struggled to keep his anger in check. Darraugh was threatening Roisin and he wanted nothing more than to take him on. Show him that Roisin wasn't going anywhere. But he knew that she would kill him if he shifted here and broke the house. He needed to find a way to get him outside.

"He's not mortal. Not completely, anyway," Roisin said, gaining Darraugh's attention again. "Send your damn guards. We both know I'm stronger. But I will not go back."

Paul looked over at her and for a moment, he could almost see her for what she really was. Her eyes blazing with all the fire of the sun as her hair whipped around her head like an inferno. But then he blinked and it was gone. She was back to appearing normal, standing next to him in her blue pajamas.

"So, you can leave now, and I'll let you go without kicking your ass. Tell Mother and Father, thanks, but no thanks. They can fix their own damn problems without dragging me into it," she snarled.

"It is your destiny-"

"FUCK DESTINY!" Roisin shouted, a strong blast of heat exploding from her. Paul and even Darraugh stumbled as it hit them. "That is not the destiny I choose!"

Brother and sister stared each other down for a few tense moments, and Paul wasn't sure what to do. He wanted to defend Roisin, but he had a feeling this was a fight she wanted to take care of herself.

"We both know you can't choose your own destiny. That you cannot change prophecy," Darraugh said softly, for a moment his harsh exterior slipping. "One of these days you will see this and accept it."

Roisin laughed harshly, shaking her head.

"I'll never accept _that_ destiny. It's not what I want. I had nothing to do with it!" she shouted back at him.

"Please, Ro," Darraugh pleaded, his rough exterior completely slipping away as worry entered his eyes and he took a step towards her. "I wish there was another way, but there is not. We've barely been able to keep the peace these last 100 years and I have searched for something - anything - else that we could do-"

"You can drop the concerned brother act," Roisin said, her voice and eyes now cold as she cut him off. "You stopped being my brother the day you sided with _them_."

"As always, you think of nothing but yourself," Darraugh said, his frustration clear as he frowned at her. "When will you start to realize that your court and your duty to your court always come first! It is how it's always been!"

"Just because I was born into it doesn't mean I have to choose that life. And I don't," Roisin said. "When will you stop thinking about duty for a goddamn second?!"

"I do not have that luxury when I'm trying to stop a fucking war!" Darraugh roared in return, his eyes now blazing with flames.

Okay, this seemed pretty damn serious. But _that's_ why she was on the run? Honestly all this talk about war, destiny and prophecy was really starting to confuse Paul. Just what else was Roisin keeping from him?

"There is always a war!" Roisin shouted back, roughly running her fingers through her hair. "Even if you somehow got me back to the Fae world, to go through with it, there's no guarantee that it would stop another war from happening."

"You know the prophecy-"

"Like, I said. Fuck the prophecy!"

"We finally have a chance to end it for good and we both know that you're the key to that whether you like it or not," Darraugh shouted back. He glared at her a moment before smoothing down his shirt, now seemingly completely calm. "I can see that you're unable to be reasonable at the moment." He shot a glare to Paul as though he thought it was his fault. Paul glared back. "You have one month to come to your senses and return to the Summer Court of your own free will. Otherwise, I will be forced to take measures you will not enjoy."

"I'd like to see you try," Roisin retorted. Darraugh just narrowed his eyes at her.

"Don't even think of running again. I will find you," he said. He then glared at Paul once more and suddenly, he was gone.

Paul felt a heavy weight dissipate from his chest and pulled in a deep breath, unsure of just when the air had started feeling thick. He walked over and sat down on the edge of the bed, rubbing his face as Roisin began frantically pacing in front of the windows. He then looked up at her.

"Ro… what was that?"

****

Roisin stopped pacing, her eyes drifting over to Paul. He looked tired, but there was a determination in his eyes.

Oh, shit. Shit. Shit. She was so caught up in the fact that her brother had found her that she hadn't even stopped to think about the fact that Paul was there and heard everything. Fuck.

"So… you have a brother… and parents," he stated. There wasn't any accusation there, but she could sense some hurt. "Why didn't you tell me any of this?"

Roisin swallowed and looked away, closing her eyes as she attempted to gather her thoughts. She needed to come up with a plan to evade Darraugh and they still had to find Tara, but that could wait. Right now, she needed to come clean to her boyfriend and she wasn't exactly sure just how he was going to take any of this.

Or how she was going to get through this.

"Okay, so… yea. That was my brother. The Crown Prince of the Summer Court," she said, still not looking at him. "My parents are the King and Queen."

"So… you're a princess, I take it. Royal fae," Paul said. She nodded, still not looking at him. "Why did you really run away? Is it because of this war? And why do they really want you back so badly? And what the hell is up with this prophecy?"

She closed her eyes again, taking yet another deep breath.

"Right, so I told you that the courts don't always get along," she started. "Winter, Summer and Shadow… we're the most powerful. And the most power-hungry. There's always been some sort of disturbance between them. The balance of power always shifting." She swallowed. "Since before I was born, Summer and Winter have been at each other's throats. There was a really long war - so many fae were killed… But finally, my father was able to reach an armistice with the Winter king - Fionn. He has a son, the Crown Prince Rian. In exchange for peace between the courts… my father promised me to the Winter Court. In marriage."

She waited a moment before looking over. Paul was still on her bed, his dark eyes boring into her, but she couldn't tell what he was thinking.

"I never agreed to it. They made the deal without even telling me. It was all because of this really stupid prophecy. And… I know that it's for peace, but I can't marry him. I would never survive in the Winter Court," she said quickly. "I won't do it… I can't… I can't..."

She started towards him, but then stopped, for a moment getting lost in her memories. Her eyes widened as she was taken back to one encounter in the gardens at the Summer Palace. It was the first time they met - before the betrothal had been set. Goddess, she had only been maybe 20 or so?

A chill came over her as she began shaking, his ice blue eyes filled with malice flooding her mind. His cold sneer. The white-hot pain she felt when he grabbed her, ice flowing up her arm, entering her veins.

_I'm going to have so much fun playing with you, princess…_

Then she was at the Winter Palace. She was cowering in a corner, the ice from the palace wall biting into her skin through her night dress, bruises already starting to form on her skin. She whimpered as he slowly walked up to her, then roughly grabbed her chin, yanking her up from the floor until their noses were nearly touching. Ice began spreading across her skin. Her breath coming out in puffs of frozen mist.

_You're mine, Roisin. No one else will ever have you..._

Roisin hadn't realized that she had collapsed into a sobbing mess on her bedroom floor until suddenly she was enveloped by warmth. Immediately, she clung to Paul, burying her face in his chest as she cried. He said nothing as he held her close.

After she had finally calmed down some, Paul pulled back from her, his dark eyes full of worry as he gently took her face in his large hands, his warmth filling her and chasing away the chill.

"You don't have to tell me anything if you don't want to, Ro," he said softly. "But I can tell that he hurt you. And I'm not going to let him ever hurt you again."

Staring into his eyes, Riosin knew that he was telling the truth. That he would do anything in his power to keep Rian away from her. All at once, Roisin felt safe as he pulled her back towards him. Part of her relieved even though the fear was still coursing just under the surface.

She knew he meant it - she didn't have to say anything. But the words were bubbling up all on their own, begging to come out. So long she had held her secrets. The only person who knew everything was Sean. But she was tired of holding it inside. The pain. The fear. The weakness.

"He was always hurting me," she whispered, not wanting to see Paul's face as she told him. Paul only tightened his arms around her. "At first, it was just… mean tricks. Then he started using his power on me more and more. Showing me that I would always be weaker than him… But then… we went to the Winter Court for his birthday. I didn't know it at the time, but they had just struck the deal - deciding our marriage… He… he came to my room that night…"

Roisin closed her eyes, feeling more hot tears pour down her cheeks. She felt Paul's arms tighten around her, but he still didn't say anything.

"I… I tried to fight him off, but I was so afraid. And so… weak. And… I worried that he would hurt my family if I didn't… if I didn't… just… give him what he wanted," she said, her voice small as she squeezed her eyes shut again. Her chest felt tight and it was difficult to breath.

"You're not weak, Ro," Paul said. "Never think of yourself as weak."

She pulled back, looking up into his eyes.

"But… I couldn't fight him… I should have… I should have…"

She was cut off as Paul held her face again, his expression serious, but there was also something deeper in his eyes. Perhaps… was it love? Wait… Love? Where did that thought come from?

"It wasn't your fault," he said. "None of this was your fault."

She nodded and noticed that even though he was calm, just underneath the surface, there was a simmering rage. A rage that she understood. A rage she was slowly starting to match. Against Rian. Her parents. Her brother. For the damn goddess Clodagh for making the prophecy in the first place.

"I will never let him hurt you again," he said slowly. "That's a promise. We'll find a way to keep you away from the Winter Court. Your brother. Summer Court. All of it. You never have to go back to them."

Roisin just nodded. She wasn't sure why, but she believed him. That he could help protect her from them. She didn't know how, but she felt better knowing she had Paul at her side.

"Does your family know?" he asked softly, the current of anger still barely under the surface.

"No. I never told them. Well, I told Darraugh some things… and he still took their side," she said. "But… one way or another, Rian's going to try and find me. He doesn't like being told no. Oh, fuck. And Darraugh knows where I am now."

She frantically looked around the room as the hard truth settled in. After 100 years on the run, her brother had found her. And he would tell her parents, who would then tell the Winter Court. Rian wouldn't wait a month. He could come at any time. They couldn't stay here. She was a sitting duck.

"Hey, Ro. Look at me," Paul said. She continued frantically looking around, her breathing coming in short spurts. "What if I told you something that might help?"

She stopped and stared at him, latching onto the words. What?

"You know something that might help?" she asked, confused. Paul barely knew anything about the fae. He smiled slightly and took a deep breath.

"I don't know, but… I need to tell you anyway. And it _could_ help. Maybe?" he said. "What I was going to tell you earlier… So you know most of the wolf stuff, right?" She nodded. "There's something else that we do… we, ah… we imprint."

Her eyes widened slightly in confusion. What was an imprint?

"The first time we meet eyes with the person that we're meant to be with - our… soulmate, I guess? I don't think that's the right word, but I'll go with it for now - we imprint. It creates an unbreakable bond instantaneously. They become our world. And well, it's not always romantic. But in that moment, we become whatever our imprint needs or wants. A friend. A brother. And sometimes, yea, a lover. But a partner," he said, still holding her gaze. He then took another deep breath. "Ro… I imprinted on you."

Roisin didn't say anything at first as she took in the information. He… imprinted. On her. How?

"But I'm not a wolf," she replied, saying the first thing that came into her mind. Paul chuckled.

"Yea, well, that's not a requirement. As far as I know, no one's ever imprinted on another wolf. It's been humans. And then there's Jacob. He imprinted on a hybrid - half human, half vampire," he said. Roisin's eyes widened again. Wait…

"Nessie?" she asked, remembering overhearing Edward and Carlisle talk about her the other night. In fact, the wolves had mentioned her as well. "But… I thought she was a little girl?"

"She grows incredibly fast and will be fully mature around age 7. But yea, like I said, it's not always romantic. He's like a big brother to her… even if it is super weird and I don't get it," he said. "The point is, we don't really know just why we imprint on who we do, but we think it has something to do with finding the person we're most compatible with and all."

Roisin nodded, her thoughts turning back to the night they met. How she had been completely overcome. And then the next morning. How he had affected her at dinner last night. And… well, everything.

"Holy shit… everything makes sense now," she whispered, meeting his eyes again. He smiled and nodded.

"Yea, when I found out what you were… a lot of things started making sense as well. For starters, no one else has had as… intense a reaction as me," he said. He blushed slightly as he looked away.

"Okay… so we're… meant to be," she said. He looked back at her and nodded. "We're… soulmates…"

It was a weird concept to her. Sure soulmates existed among the fae - oh, how they loved their fate and destiny bullshit. But Roisin had never thought she might have one. Born royal, she had resigned herself long ago to the fact that some day she would marry, but it would be for political reasons, though that didn't necessarily have to be bad (well, before she met Rian, that is). Not to mention, as impulsive as Summer fae were, they tended to fall out of love just as quickly as they fell into it, flinting from partner to partner. However, this imprint now explained why she was so attached to Paul. Why she couldn't even think of the possibility of leaving him someday. How she didn't want to be with anyone else even though it went against her nature - Summer fae were the flightiest of them all.

"Yea, but you do have a choice. If you don't want to be with me like that, it's fine. I just… all I ask is that you let me stay near you. It gets painful if we have to separate for long periods of time," he said, frowning slightly.

"I… okay. Hold on a moment," Roisin said, taking a deep breath and slowly letting it out. "This… is… On the one hand, I'm relieved. It answers a lot of questions. On the other, it's… weird? By nature, Summer fae aren't… well, we don't… Hmm… We tend to be more open with our relationships," she said.

Paul's eyebrows rose slightly. He then furrowed his brow.

"Not that that means I'm saying no. I'm not. I really do want… this… whatever it is. I'm just letting you know that, it's a bit weird for me. Being… this into someone. And not even thinking about anyone else," she said.

He smiled in relief.

"I'm not really sure how any of this is going to help me, though," she continued, frowning.

Really, how did it help? Okay, so she had a cosmic bond with Paul. More than that, she wanted to be with him. To never leave his side. And understood why now. But it's not like the fae respected the rules and laws of others. They barely respected the rules and laws of their own courts. And they sure as hell didn't respect anything in the mortal world. The only thing sacred were the deals they made. And at the moment, she wasn't sure if there was any deal she could make that would protect both her and Paul. She was still trying to figure out how to get out of the one her father made with Fionn and Rian.

"We'll figure it out. I promise. You've got not only me, but the whole pack," Paul said. Roisin looked at him, confused. "Another perk of being an imprint. You're automatically part of the pack and under its protection."

She still wasn't sure that it made much of a difference, but it made her feel better. And gave her hope.

"Okay, so we have a month to figure out what to do about my brother. And in the meantime, we still need to figure out who took Tara and get her back," she said.

She then sat up slightly, a small smile on her face. She knew she probably should have done this before. When she first came clean to him about what she was. But she had been so afraid that he would see what she really was. But now he knew about the Fae world. And Paul would need it to protect himself and others.

"What?" Paul asked, a bit cautious. "You get an idea?"

"No. Well, yes. But not about all of that. You need something to protect yourself," she said. "Right now, you only see glimpses of me, because I'm your imprint, I think, and when I want you to. But you need to be able to see fae all of the time."

"Wait, there's a way for that?" he asked. Roisin smiled and nodded.

"Close your eyes," she ordered. Paul gave her a look, but finally obliged.

Roisin took a deep breath, focusing her thoughts and then finally exhaled, blowing on Paul's eyes. It was the first time she had tried doing this, but she was determined that it would work. After a moment, she sat back.

"Okay… I'm not sure if it worked, but I can try again if it didn't. Open your eyes," she said, nearly holding her breath.

Paul slowly opened his eyes and then blinked a few times. His eyes then widened in awe.

"What do you see?" she asked.

"Holy shit, Ro… I see… you..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Never fear, the next part to this is coming with more answers to things…
> 
> Thanks for reading and following!


	22. Cool for the Summer

Paul couldn't stop staring at her. She was always beautiful, and he had caught glimpses of her before, but seeing her now… it was like he was seeing her for the first time all over again. Her skin was luminescent, as though she carried the sun inside her. Her eyes were far bluer than he previously thought, and he noted that her ears did actually have slight points.

Behind her, large, iridescent gold wings fanned out and there were streaks of gold mixed in her fiery red locks, the colors blending together and looking as though it was alive. Like liquid fire.

Slowly, he reached out and touched her cheek, his thumb brushing it lightly.

"Is this how you always look?" he asked. Roisin chuckled.

"For the most part. Though I temper it around other fae. Helps to keep us hidden. We didn't want everyone to know I'm royal fae from the Summer Court," she said.

"Does everyone look like you?" he asked.

"No. We all look a bit different. It varies. Depending on if you're born in a court or not. If you're royal or not," she replied. "Some abilities we share, and others vary from fae to fae. Mae is good at manipulating people - getting them to do things without realizing."

"Sean?" he then asked, now wondering what he and Mae looked like.

"Trust me, you don't want to see Sean when he's at full power," Roisin replied wryly. "They don't call Shadow Court the court of nightmares for nothing. He taught me how to hide my essence from other fae."

Paul nodded, still mystified by the sight of her. Holy shit. This was his imprint?

"Right, so you probably want to know about the prophecy, then," she said, now appearing all business.

Prophecy? Oh, right. The thing that she claimed had started everything. The reason why her parents promised her in marriage to a complete and utter asshole. Paul wanted nothing more than to rip his head off, but now he needed to focus and not get distracted staring at her.

"Okay, so what is it?" he asked.

"So… basically about a thousand years ago, one of the goddesses, Clodagh, came to the Fae world and foretold of a child of summer that would be born on the most sacred of days. And that through her power, worlds that were broken would be made whole again and that there would be peace and prosperity under her reign," she said with a sigh. "No one really thought about it until I was born."

"June 21," Paul said, instantly recalling the date, but not sure what that meant. Roisin nodded.

"I was born on the summer solstice," she explained. "It's our most sacred of days."

Paul nodded, following so far. Though he still didn't completely understand just why they all assumed that this meant the prophecy was about her. And now he was intrigued by the fae's version of religion. Shit, it was hard to focus. This was a lot.

"Aren't there a lot of people born on solstices?" he asked.

"Just me for the last thousand years or so," Roisin said with a shrug. "And well, like I said, there's been wars between fae for centuries and centuries. No one could ever seem to get along. Winter doesn't trust Summer. Summer doesn't trust Winter. No one trusts Shadow. Autumn and Spring try and stay out of it for the most part, though even they've gotten involved here and there."

"So, then you were born, and everyone thought you were some sort of chosen one who was going to bring peace to the Fae world," Paul said. Roisin didn't meet his eyes, fidgeting slightly.

"Pretty much. Not sure what everyone expected me to do," she said. "I'm not that different from other royal fae… Not nearly the most powerful. But my parents were convinced this meant I was going to be some sort of fae queen, even though our throne had already been promised to Darraugh as the firstborn. And then, it made sense to them. I would bring the courts together by marrying Rian - Winter's been our biggest enemy since before I was born. So I would become the Winter queen and - poof - peace for all."

From the look on her face, it was clear she didn't think this was how it would go down.

"And now you have a month to find a way out of it," Paul said, the enormity of what was going on starting to sink in. They had one month to figure out a way to keep her from the Winter Court. And find Tara. Roisin sighed.

"We've been trying to figure a way out of it for 100 years, Sean and I. Mae doesn't know about this. Well, she knew about the betrothal - and the prophecy - but she doesn't know the truth about Rian. I just couldn't tell her… and now this…," she said. "I mean, I honestly think the only choice I have is to run. Try and stay ahead of Darraugh and hopefully give myself some more time to figure it out."

Paul felt his heart stop. She was still going to leave.

"If you run, I'm going with you," he said automatically. Roisin stared at him a moment in shock, but then looked away.

"I couldn't ask you to do that," she said softly. "It's not fair to you. And your life is here."

Paul reached out and pulled her back into his arms.

"Did you just forget about the part where I imprinted on you? You're my world now, Ro. If that means going on the road with you or fighting with you, then that's what I'll do," he said before kissing the side of her head. "Not to mention, I was serious when I told you it's painful for us to be away from our imprints. So… my purpose now is keeping you safe. Looks like you're stuck with me."

Roisin stared at him a few moments before she smiled. He felt a bit of the pressure leave him at that.

"Certainly, getting a lot more than you bargained for," she replied ruefully.

"Hey, I'll gladly take it," he replied. Roisin chuckled softly. "We'll figure this out. Together. I promise."

"But first… we need to find Tara," she said, her smile falling slightly. "The longer it takes, the less likely we'll get to her in time."

Paul took a deep breath and slowly let it out.

"Got any ideas?" he asked. Roisin frowned slightly, thinking for a bit.

"Maybe if I go back to the beach I might… I don't know… find something," she said. "Maybe I missed something…"

"We were able to track Tara through the woods a bit," he said. Roisin looked up at him, her eyes wide. She had obviously forgotten about that.

"Right… you found a trail," she said. "How did you do that? I thought you said it had no scent…" Paul chuckled.

"We're wolves, Ro. Fast. Powerful. Great eyesight. Excellent hearing. And an amazing sense of smell. We can track just about anything," he replied. "Well, except for this fae, apparently. But thankfully we had Tara's scent."

Roisin was immediately on her feet and walking towards her closet. Paul got up from the floor and started walking towards his bag to get his clothes. He looked over at Roisin, seeing a determined look on her face.

"Come on, let's go find Tara."

Roisin stood still in the clearing, her eyes roaming around the trees, taking in little things here and there. A broken branch. Disturbances in the bushes. She couldn't smell anything, but Paul swore this was where the trail ended.

It was fairly deep in the forest, far from prying eyes. Granted fae moved fast enough - even if they were carrying someone no one would see them anyway. She took a deep breath, feeling more settled. She needed something to focus on right now other than the mess that was this morning, and this was as good as anything.

"Where exactly did you say it ended?" she asked. Paul walked past her, taking a deep breath through his nose.

He came to a stop and looked down at the ground and then up at the trees.

"Here," he said, turning to look back at her.

Roisin walked over and looked down at the ground, looking for something - anything - that might be able to tell her who was behind this and where they could have gone.

"It's like… they just disappeared. The trail doesn't go anywhere," he continued. "Unless they flew somewhere…"

"Maybe… but there are easier ways for fae to get around," she replied.

Roisin crouched down, looking at the forest floor a bit more closely. She closed her eyes, concentrating on the air around her. She knew there were fae portals all over, and they knew of a few around the area. It helped getting across the country or the world much faster. Or to get to the Fae world. If there was one here, she would feel it.

She reached out her hand, slowly moving it around. She then stopped when her fingers brushed against something. Opening her eyes, Roisin stood, now feeling the hum of energy in the air.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Fae portal," she said, staring in front of her.

To the normal eye, nothing was there. And mortals couldn't get through unless escorted by a fae. But she could see a faint shimmer moving in the air.

"Serious? You guys have portals?" he asked. Roisin looked over at him, smirking slightly.

"Helps get around. Some connect to the Fae world. Others connect to the other parts of the world," she said, turning to look back at it. "Whoever took her, they went through here. I didn't even know this was here and I thought we had mapped out all of them around here."

"Can you make them?" he then asked. Roisin shook her head.

"Well, I can't. Not on my own. It takes a few fae working together to connect them, depending on how powerful they are," she explained. "Sean and I have had to make a few, but it takes a lot of energy, so we try not to do it often."

She reached out and brushed her fingers against the veil. There was only one way to find out where it went. She took Paul's hand and took a deep breath.

"Whoa, what are you doing?" he asked. Roisin looked over at him.

"You trust me?" she asked. He didn't answer at first but then he nodded, gripping her hand. Roisin turned back to the portal and stepped through, pulling Paul with her.

When they came out on the other side, Roisin was immediately tense.

"Where are we?" he asked, looking around.

They were standing on the side of a highway, seemingly in the middle of the desert, the only thing there was a dive bar, motorcycles parked outside and rowdy shouting and music pouring out from the open door.

"Not sure, but I have a good feeling I know who likes to hang out here," she said dryly, already walking towards the bar.

It had Shadow fae written all over it. Which was not good.

"Whoa, whoa. You sure this is a good idea?" Paul asked, yanking her back. Roisin turned to look at him. "Looks like there's a rough crowd in there."

Roisin smiled and rolled her eyes and then turned and started back to the door.

"Come on, Paul. You're a wolf. I'm fae. Pretty sure there's nothing in there that could come close to taking us on," she replied.

A smile spread slowly across his face as he nodded and they both started back towards the bar. They walked in and stopped, Roisin looking around. Despite the fact that it was in the middle of the day, the bar was full of all sorts of rough-looking types. But they didn't scare her. And they weren't what she was looking for.

Finally, her eyes stopped on a pair sitting in a dark corner, unseen by everyone else save her - and now Paul.

"Holy shit," he murmured, obviously seeing them. "Are those horns?"

"Yea."

Roisin glanced at him and then started weaving her way through the crowd, ignoring the looks and leers she was getting, though she could tell that Paul was struggling with it. Though she was grateful to have a bit of muscle with her, should something happen.

He spent more time glaring at the others around them rather than watching where they were going. But once they reached the corner, his eyes were fixed on the couple. They were identical - large, wicked looking horns coming out of their heads from wild, curly dark hair, their skin an ashy gray. And yet, they were both inexplicably beautiful. Terrifying to most mortals, Roisin would bet, but still beautiful. Upon noticing her, the first fixed its red eyes on her, causing Paul to jump slightly.

"Looks like a fuckin' leech," he muttered. The fae grinned, revealing a line of spiky teeth.

"Ah, look, sister. Summer fae," it said in a scratchy voice. The identical fae at its side, slowly stood, peering up at the two.

"And a scrumptious snack," it said.

Roisin narrowed her eyes at them, allowing a simmering heat to pour out from her, forcing the fae back away.

"I have some questions," she said firmly. "About a week ago, a fae might have come through here with a mortal girl. Who was it and where did they go?"

The two cackled loudly.

"Why should we help you?" the first asked.

Paul growled and stepped closer. Even though they thought he was only mortal, it was enough to get the fae's attention, the smiles fading from their faces as they looked at him cautiously.

"What _are_ you?" the second asked.

"Doesn't matter," he said. "What do you know?"

They looked at each other and then back at the couple, seeming to hesitate.

"We don't have all day," Roisin said, sure there were flames in her eyes, sending a small push of power at them to move things along. The two jumped.

"Don't know who," the first said.

"We don't know everyone. But seen him before," the second added.

"Came through with a girl. Strange skin. Wet," the first said. "Dark hair."

"Where did they go?" Roisin asked, feeling her heart start to pound slightly. "Was she hurt?"

"Bleeding, yes," the second said. "But not close to death. No."

"Where did they go?" Paul asked. They looked at him.

"You don't want to go there," the first said.

"Oh, no, no. They would eat you alive. Such a tender morsel," the second added, starting to reach out to touch him with long, claw-tipped fingers. Paul glared at it and it quickly pulled its hand back. Roisin felt her blood run cold.

There was only one place the fae would have taken Tara.

"You know where we're talking about," the first said, looking at Roisin. She nodded. "Will you go? To the King of Nightmares and Shadows? He's waiting for you."

She could feel Paul looking at her. She squared her shoulders, staring it straight in the eyes. Of course, Cathal was fucking waiting on her. Been waiting a good 100 years, if she remembered correctly.

"Pass on the word that I'm looking for him. He knows how to contact me," she said.

She then spun on her heels and strode back through the bar and outside. She could hear Paul keeping up with her.

"What are they talking about, Ro?" he asked.

"Mae was fucking right," she said, making her way back to the portal. She stopped and turned to him, taking his hand. "Shadow Court."

****

"Absolutely not," Sean quietly, his eyes fixed on Roisin.

Paul frowned at him from where he was standing behind Roisin in the kitchen. Sean was leaning on the island and for a moment, Paul's frown faltered a bit as he backed up. Now that he had Sight, he understood why he always got a bit of a chill around Sean.

Shadows slithered across his body, sliding in and around his arms and torso. His eyes were darker and there was a sinister look to him, as though he could snap at any second and kill them all despite the fact he was currently standing completely still. Paul could almost see the tension coiling just under his skin.

"You can't see him," Sean continued.

"I can handle it," Roisin said. "And they pretty much confirmed she was taken by Shadow Court."

"You know how dangerous he is," Sean said.

"And you know he won't hurt me," she replied.

"He could tell Darraugh or Rian where you are," Sean countered.

"We both know that he wouldn't. He hates them more than me and well, he wants me all to himself. Plus, it's too late anyway. Darraugh already found me," Roisin said. Sean's eyes widened as he sucked in a quick breath.

"Kind of important to mention, don't you think?" he asked, his eyes flicking to Paul.

"She told me everything," he said, placing his hands on her shoulders. "I'm not going anywhere and as far as I'm concerned, Rian will never get his hands on her."

Sean studied him a few moments and then looked back at Roisin.

"Do you really think it's a good idea? You know Cathal. You can't trust him," he replied.

"I can handle him. I've handled him before," she replied.

"Yea, after I warned you and look what happened with that," Sean replied. "You were so horrified that you wouldn't talk to me for a week."

"Okay, I was a bit freaked out, yea. But I can handle it now," Roisin said lightly, waving her hand in the air. "I was only 50 at the time. I'm stronger now."

"I'm going to tell you the same thing I told you then. You go into the Shadow Court, there's no guarantee he'll let you out," he said.

Paul tightened his grip on her shoulders. Okay, maybe this wasn't such a good idea. He was starting to get the idea that this Cathal guy was seriously bad news. If Sean was worried, then maybe she shouldn't meet with him.

"Can you go?" Paul asked.

Sean's eyes flicked back to him as Roisin stiffened. Sean's face darkened and Paul nearly took a step back, wanting to put more space in between them. Okay, maybe he shouldn't have asked that. An overwhelming sense of dread washed over him but then suddenly it was gone.

"No one is going to him. I told them to have him contact me. He'll come to us," Roisin said, glancing back at Paul and then over at Sean.

The other fae looked back at her, raising an eyebrow at her.

"You think that's any better? Having him come here? What if he decides he likes Forks?" Sean asked. Roisin sighed and ran her fingers through her hair.

"Someone in his court has Tara! This very well could be our only chance at getting her back!" Roisin shouted, jumping to her feet. "I can do this. _Let me do this_."

She stared down Sean, neither speaking for several moments.

"I'll go with her," Paul said. Both fae turned to look at him. Roisin looked as though she was about to argue with him, but he just gave her a stern look. "This guy sounds bad. If Sean is worried about you seeing him alone, then I'm going with you." Roisin frowned. "I'm a wolf, Ro. And I've killed vampires. I'm sure I can handle a fae king."

"I would feel better if he was with you," Sean added slightly reluctanly. Roisin and Paul turned to look over at him, seeing that he had calmed down somewhat. "And well… I should go too."

"Oh my god-"

"I'm serious, Ro. We're not taking any chances. Not with Cathal," Sean said, his voice harsh. He then pushed off from the island and stalked out of the room.

"Okay, so just what is with this Cathal guy?" Paul asked once he was gone. Roisin sighed and leaned back against the island.

"There's… a lot of history there," she said. "I won't get into it, but yea… there was a reason Sean left. And he hasn't seen or spoken to Cathal since then."

Paul thought back, trying to remember what they had said that first night when they told them about fae.

"Right… 500 years?" he said. Roisin nodded.

"Sean is 700. He left the Shadow Court when he was only 200," she said. She looked towards the archway, leading out of the kitchen and then back at Paul. She then got off her stool and wrapped her arms around Paul's neck and pecked him on the lips. "I should go check on Sean. I'll be back."

Paul nodded and watched as she walked out of the kitchen. Sighing, he sat down at the island, going over everything that had figured out and seen that day. His girlfriend wasn't just fae - she was royal. And there was a fucking prophecy about her bringing peace to the Fae world and some seriously crazy fae after her. Who had hurt her. Then he had traveled hundreds of miles in a split second to another place - they still didn't know where. And now he was going to a meeting with the Shadow Court king.

And here he had been hoping things would quiet down. Holy shit, how did his life turn into this?

****

Roisin stood just inside the door of Sean’s room, hesitating a moment before she walked in. It was dark and Sean was seated on the side of his bed, his back to her. 

“What?” he asked, sensing her there. 

Roisin walked over and sat down next to him, reaching over and talking his hand. Physical contact was always the best way to calm him down or get him out of a state.

“I know you don’t want to do this,” she said softly.

She knew how hard this was for him. And that he would do it regardless, because he wanted to keep her safe. But it still killed her just a bit. Sean looked down at their hands and then up at her, a slight smile on his face.

“What kind of Shadow fae would I be if I ran away from something dangerous?” he asked. “I do recall offering to help you break out of your betrothal, and well, we both knew I was going to have to face him at some point. Probably good to get it over with. At least it’s on somewhat neutral ground.”

“You honestly thought that I would go to the Shadow Court again after last time?” she asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

“I’d go with you, you know. If you were going to him,” he said, his expression turning serious.

“Lucky for you, I like having you around,” she said, butting into his shoulder. “Hence having him meet me here.” 

Sean nodded and looked away, a few different emotions flying over his face. Goddess, she couldn’t imagine what was going through his head right now. 

“You think it’s a good idea having Paul go with us?” he then asked. Which almost had Roisin laughing, considering he had been on board with the plan just moments ago.

“There’s no talking him out of it,” she said. “And trust me - they turn into massive wolves. Even I got a bit scared the first time I saw them. He’ll be fine. Plus I won’t let Cathal do anything to him.” She glanced over at him. “You won’t either.”

Sean turned back to her, his shadows now swirling around the both of them.

“But are you sure? He’s still mostly mortal. There’s no telling how Cathal will affect him,” he said. Roisin looked away, a soft smile coming over her face.

“Yea,” she said. “And well… it turns out we’ve imprinted.”

“What?” Sean asked. Roisin chuckled and looked up.

“So, wolves have this thing. Imprinting. When they meet their soulmate, they create this instant, lasting bond. It physically hurts to be away from them,” she said. “I still don’t really understand it, but… I know one thing.” She looked over at him. “I want to be with him, Sean. This isn’t some sort of… fleeting thing. It’s real. And… I feel… better with him. Like I’m… complete. I’ve felt it since the day I met him. Which I think explains all the strange things happening to me… The attachment… And… I don’t know how we’re going to make this work, but I want to try.”

Sean studied her a moment, a curious look coming over his face. He then smiled and nodded slowly.

“Okay. Then I guess Cara, Mae and I are just going to have to get used to it,” he said with a sigh. Roisin’s eyes widened slightly. She hadn’t been completely expecting him to give in so easily. 

He had after all warned her about getting too close to Paul from the beginning. Had been concerned about her. Perhaps he had seen all along just how strong her bond was to Paul and that’s why he had been cautious.

“Really? Just like that? A few days ago, you wanted me to break up with him,” she said. 

“We’re fae, Ro. Destiny is kind of our thing. And - despite everything - it looks like Paul might be yours,” he said. Roisin rolled her eyes. “But what’s this about Darraugh?”

Roisin frowned, her thoughts going back to that morning. It seemed like a lifetime ago. After she found the lead for Tara, she had pushed it out of her mind. But she was going to have to process it sometime. Looked like that time was now.

“After we find Tara, we have to leave,” she said. “Darraugh found me. Gave me a month to go back or he would come for me and drag me back.”

They were both silent a few moments, the information sinking in.

“How much did you tell Paul?” Sean then asked. 

“Everything about why I left. Had to. He was there and heard it all.”

She couldn’t look at him and already felt a bit of a prick of tears in her eyes. She took a deep breath and looked up at the ceiling, blinking rapidly. All of sudden, everything hit her. Darraugh finding her. Having to meet with Cathal. 

Telling Paul what happened. 

Only Sean knew and it had taken a rather large amount of fae wine to get her to open up about it to him. She couldn’t even tell Mae. And then she had just spilled it all to Paul, who she had barely known for a few months. Who was her imprint. Her soulmate. 

It grew a bit harder for her to breathe. 

“Hey, breathe, Ro,” Sean said, rubbing her back. “It’s going to be okay.”

“I thought it would be, but I don’t know. You know how Rian is,” she said, already seeing flashes of the Winter fae. She shook her head, almost as though she thought she could shake the images away.

“We won’t let him take you,” Sean said. 

“But he’s so strong-”

“Hey, stop it,” Sean said, reaching out and forcing her to look at him. “You’re strong too, Ro. You have a fucking prophecy about you. And you have me, Paul. Mae.”

“And the wolf packs,” she muttered. Sean frowned. “Perk of imprinting. I’m part of the pack now.” His eyebrows rose in surprise.

“That could come in handy,” he replied. 

“Focus, Sean,” she snapped. He smirked, but it slid away.

“Right. We’ll deal with that in time. But first… Cathal,” he said. His shadows began to swirl a bit more frantically.

“Guys!”

They both turned to the open door, seeing Mae standing there with Cara and Paul. They all looked slightly grim, save Cara, who was just worried.

“Cathal sent a message,” Cara said. “You mind telling me why the fucking hell you’re going to meet with him tomorrow?”

Roisin looked at Sean and then back at them.

“Because he’s got Tara,” she said, standing. “And I guess now it’s time to prepare…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And next chapter… we finally meet Cathal… I don't know why I'm so excited about this…


	23. Waiting for the Sun to Shine

Paul wasn't sure just what it was, but he felt more on edge than usual as he followed Roisin and Sean through the woods to where they would meet with Cathal. They weren't that far from the house, but he couldn't help but feel as though it was somehow darker that night. That the once familiar trees now seemed a bit eviler. Or maybe that was just all in his head.

Cara had assured them that the king would be there, and it would be civil. Or at least as civil as Cathal could be, Sean had remarked dryly, before rolling his eyes. Paul hoped they weren't walking into some sort of ambush. He felt as though every cell, every nerve in his body was on alert.

From the way the others talked about him, it seemed like this Cathal guy wasn't all that great. Which was why Paul had told them it wouldn't be such a bad idea to have the packs nearby just in case. Roisin was worried about putting them in danger, but Sean took his side. He glanced around, not seeing them, but knew they were there regardless.

They finally came to a stop in a clearing and automatically Paul began to walk around, checking to make sure everything was okay. Though mostly it was because he was once again too nervous to stay still. Roisin and Sean stood in the middle of the clearing, Roisin huffing softly in annoyance as she checked the time and then looked around the forest. Sean stood still as stone, his expression unreadable but his body language was tense. He was definitely the least happy of everyone to see the Shadow King.

While Roisin had yet to tell Paul just what was going on there, he figured there must be some sort of bad blood between him and Cathal, which was likely the reason he had left 500 years ago.

"So… anything I should know before I meet this guy?" Paul asked, looking at Roisin.

"Don't make any deals with him," she said. "Actually… you should probably let Sean and I do all the talking, just to be safe…"

"It's best not to offend him - intentionally or accidentally. He's incredibly unforgiving," Sean added. "And extremely creative when it comes to punishment."

Paul's eyebrows rose slightly as he started to scan their surroundings again, though he had walked over to Roisin's side. Okay, maybe going directly to the leader of the Shadow Court wasn't necessarily the best idea.

A soft breeze blew through the trees, causing a chill to run down Paul's spine. A sense of foreboding began to gradually build, putting him more on edge as his eyes scanned the clearing and he moved closer to Roisin, ready to jump in front of her if needed. He saw shadows beginning to move and shift in ways that didn't look natural, gliding around tree trunks and through branches until they congregated into a large swirling mass on the other side of the clearing.

A young, well-dressed man in an expensive suit with dark hair stepped out of the shadows, a smirk already on his face as his dark blue eyes took in the group before him. He appeared almost cavalier, but there was something sinister about his smile and calculating about the way he was taking them in. Though he fought to brush it off, Paul felt a spike of fear run through him.

"Always good to see you, Ro," Cathal said smoothly, his eyes gliding up and down her body. Paul managed to not growl but ended up clenching his hands into fists as he glared at the fae.

"Wish I could say the same," Roisin replied, her tone dry. Cathal chuckled as he shook his head and then looked over at Sean.

"And what an unexpected surprise, brother. It's been a very, very long time," he said.

Paul glanced over at Sean on the other side of Roisin, seeing his jaw tightened. Okay, there was _a lot_ those two had left out. The shadows that usually clung to Sean were more pronounced and swirling around him a bit faster.

"And who is this?"

Paul looked back at the Shadow King, noticing that Cathal had now taken a few steps towards him, an amused smile on his face as he studied him.

"Did you bring me a gift? How thoughtful of you," Cathal said, glancing at Roisin.

"I swear to the goddesses, you lay one finger on him," Roisin warned, flames dancing in her eyes as she glared at the king.

"Ah… I see what's going on here," Cathal said, stepping even closer to Paul, studying him closely. "The sex must be good… Shame that it seems you won't share him..."

Paul maintained his scowl as the Shadow King moved closer, though reminded himself to stay calm. The last thing they needed was for him to lose it in front of the king before they got what they came for.

Suddenly, Paul was no longer in the clearing, but standing over Roisin's bloody and broken body. Her eyes dull and looking off into the distance. Piercing pain filled his chest as he shouted for her, but she didn't respond. He fell to his knees, pulling her to him as he shouted her name over and over. She was gone and she wasn't coming back.

Just as suddenly, he was now standing near Jacob's house, charging at him as anger coursed through his veins so consuming, there was no fighting it off. He watched as he pulled his arm back and landed a punch so hard that Jacob's head flew back with a deafening crack.

"Interesting…"

Paul blinked and suddenly he was back in the clearing, his heart pounding as he looked around, slightly disoriented. He then looked up, finding Cathal still standing just in front of him. What the hell was that? Had he gotten into his head? Paul then remembered what Ro and Sean had said before - the Shadow Court could find your biggest fears or darkest desires and use them against you.

Paul narrowed his eyes slightly, staring down Cathal, who seemed intrigued with him. The shadows swirled and danced around him, clinging to his body almost like some sort of misty parasite.

"He's not completely human, is he?" the Shadow King said, glancing at Roisin and then landing back on Paul. "And you gave him the Sight… My dear, have you finally fallen in love… with a mortal? Well, no… just what are you?"

"Not why we're here, Cathal," Roisin said, cutting him off. Paul could feel the temperature in the clearing rise slightly. "We have reason to believe one of yours has taken a mortal - a friend of mine - and we want her returned unharmed. She's a high school student named Tara."

Cathal looked over, studying her a moment, the amused smile never leaving his face. He then chuckled.

"Honestly, Roisin, you know how big my court is. I mean, it's ridiculous to expect that I would know _everything_ that goes on there," he said lightly. "Or keep track of _all_ the mortals that they bring in… It's a lot, if you remember."

Paul's stomach turned slightly at that statement. Just how many humans did this guy steal away and then kill?

"And yet you always seem to always know what's going on in every other court," Roisin replied, tilting her head to the side. Cathal shrugged.

"That's a matter of self-preservation. I must protect my own," he said, as his gaze moved over to Sean. "We all know that I'll do whatever I must to protect _my_ court."

"I'm here for Ro," Sean said, frowning at him. "Nothing more, so no need to get your panties in a twist."

The more he looked back and forth between Sean and Cathal, the more similarities Paul saw. It was now very clear that the two really were brothers and once again he wondered what the story was there.

"Could you at least look into it?" Roisin asked. "We don't want to start anything. We just want Tara back. And for your people to understand that we protect this place. So, once you bring her back – unharmed and alive - kindly fuck off and don't come back."

Paul felt a small rumble in the ground underneath him, still a bit amazed that Roisin could do that just by speaking. Looking at her now, it was pretty wicked. A stern expression adorned her face, her eyes glowing slightly with flames. Her chin was lifted a bit and even though she was shorter than Cathal, she carried herself as though she were 50-feet tall. Her wings had popped out and were spread out behind her.

Cathal didn't seem affected, now looking almost predatory, though Paul wasn't sure if it was because he wanted to kill her or fuck her. Either way, he didn't like it. Cathal took a few steps closer to her, causing Paul to move closer as well. Cathal paused, his eyes falling on Paul a few moments before he looked at Roisin.

"What's in it for me?" he asked, tilting his head to the side. "Surely you of all people know that you don't get something for nothing. I'm not saying we have her - because I honestly do not know - but say I discover her, what do I get for returning her unharmed and keeping my people out of this land?"

"You get to keep your head, for starters," Roisin grumbled. Cathal's eyebrows rose and he then laughed loudly. No one on their side of the clearing seemed amused, though.

In fact, Paul was internally groaning. For all their talk about him not offending Cathal, Ro didn't seem to have any qualms about it. He moved even closer, ready to jump for Cathal if he should strike.

"Oh, you certainly slay me, Roisin," Cathal said, wiping a tear from his eye. "But on a serious note, you know nothing comes for free."

"What do you want?" Roisin asked, though she appeared as though it was the absolute last thing she wanted to ask him. Cathal looked her up and down again.

"Well, we both know what I _really_ want, but you made it very clear that was off the table the last we spoke. I suppose the next best thing would be the pleasure of your company for a night," he replied. Paul tensed and didn't realize he had actually growled until everyone looked over at him. "Ah, so he's your guard dog…"

"He's my boyfriend - Paul. And he's got a really bad temper if you push him, so I'd tread carefully if I were you," Roisin replied. "And no. _That's_ not happening either."

"Boyfriend? That's rich. Tell me, how does dear Rian feel about this?" he asked, pointing back and forth between Roisin and Paul. Roisin narrowed her eyes, though even Paul saw the slight shiver of fear run through her.

"I don't give a shit about Rian," she snapped. "Quit fucking around and let's come to an arrangement."

Cathal sighed dramatically.

"And I thought you would be so much fun," he said, sounding disappointed. "I mean, imagine all the things we could accomplish together. You would fulfill the prophecy, have your little marriage problem dealt with - not to mention would be getting one hell of a lover, I must admit - and I, well…" He looked her up and down again. "Definitely eager to give it a go. I'd even let you keep the mortal… so long as you shared him."

Paul felt his body begin to shake. He was seriously close to shifting and taking the Shadow King out, not appreciating the way he was speaking to and looking at Roisin.

"Cathal, I'm warning you," Roisin said, now scowling at him. She then shot Paul a warning glance as well.

He took a deep breath, trying to keep himself in check.

"Fine. As I said, I don't know if anyone of my court has her, though you seem convinced for some reason. As a favor, I will look into it and return with news should I find any. At that point in time, I expect you ready to negotiate for real," he said. "No payment, well no..." He waved his hand through the air, leaving the statement unfinished.

"I only make a deal for her safe return," Roisin replied. Cathal stared at her a moment, but then smiled.

"You really are meant to be a queen," he replied. "Fine."

Roisin seemed to relax slightly, though she was still closely watching Cathal. The Shadow King looked over at Sean, his devious smile reappearing.

"I do miss you, brother. Perhaps someday you will find it in your heart to return," he said.

"And here I thought I wasn't welcomed," Sean replied, his expression not changing.

"Family is always welcome," Cathal replied, his smile now turning almost bloodthirsty. "It's been 500 years."

"I'll think about it," Sean said. Seeming pleased with this, Cathal stepped away from him and back to Roisin.

"Anything else, love?" he asked.

"We're good," she replied curtly.

"Very well," he said with a sigh. Then suddenly, he disappeared in a swirl of shadows.

Paul looked around and then blinked a few times, still not used to how fast they moved. But he knew that the king had actually left the area. If he had only gone unseen, even Paul would have still seen him. Sighing, Roisin turned and motioned for Paul to follow as they made their way back to the house. He glanced around the woods and gave a whistle, signaling to the others that it was over. They would meet them all at the house for an update.

"Okay, so what was… a lot of that?" Paul asked, reaching out and taking Roisin's hand. She rolled her eyes.

"Cathal being an asshole," she replied. "I don't for one goddamn second think he's going to make this easy. He's going to ask for something ridiculous."

"Hate to say it, but you might have been better off spending a night with him," Sean said. Roisin and Paul glared at him. "Don't give me that look. You know he wants you in his court. Been after you since word spread that you left the Summer Court."

"Wait, what?" Paul asked. Shit, he really needed to process all of this…

****

Roisin glared at Sean a moment, but then noticed the expression on his face and quickly lost a bit of her bluster. It was obvious that he was shaken from the interaction with his younger brother.

Right, she would talk to him about that later when others weren't around.

"You do remember the prophecy, right?" she said, looking over at Paul. "Well, everyone knows about it."

"And how powerful she is," Sean added. Roisin shot him a look. He really needed to shut up on that. "Or could be. All the other courts were vying for a marriage deal as soon as they heard Roisin had been born."

"Winter just got there with the better deal," Roisin replied ruefully. "Anyway, Sean and I have been looking for a way out of the betrothal. One way would be fulfilling the prophecy by marrying into another court - Summer and Shadow have been at each other's necks just as much as Winter and Summer."

She glanced at Sean, though he didn't react.

"Wait, you would seriously consider marrying him? Cathal?" Paul asked, getting her attention. Once again, she glanced over at Sean.

"He's asked, as I'm sure you could tell, but no. I won't marry Cathal," Roisin replied with a shudder.

Being married to him would be only mildly better than Rian. While she knew he wouldn't physically hurt her, Cathal was still one twisted fuck.

"Just tell him. He'd find out soon enough anyway," Sean said before disappearing.

"What's that about?" Paul asked, looking off in the direction that Sean had disappeared.

Roisin looked after him as well, frowning. She then took a deep breath. Sean was right, Paul would probably figure it out. And well, she couldn't seem to keep any of her secrets with him. Might as well get this one out.

"Sean was the crown prince of the Shadow Court," Roisin said. Paul came to a stop, gaping at her and then looking back towards the path.

"What?" he asked. "You mean… I thought he was just, well, normal fae. Though that was blown to bits when I figured out Cathal was his brother. But Sean… he was meant to be the Shadow King?"

Roisin sighed, her eyes trailing off after Sean as well, her brow furrowed.

"Sean is the oldest son and was supposed to take over. Their parents then died rather unexpectedly - though I have my thoughts on that, as does Sean. Cathal's always been power hungry and knew if Sean took the throne, he would change everything. So he led a coup," Roisin said. "The court was divided, but Cathal managed to get enough on his side at the time. Sean decided it wasn't worth it and gave up. Volunteered to go into self-exile in the mortal world and give up the court to Cathal in exchange for his life."

"Okay," Paul said, at this point ready to accept everything that came out of Roisin's mouth. Clearly.

"Sean's really powerful as well, but he hides it from other fae. Doesn't want them judging him," Roisin continued. "And… he's offered to retake the Shadow Court and make me his queen to fulfill the prophecy and get me out of the deal."

Paul didn't speak a few moments, instead just staring down at her in slight disbelief. Roisin fidgeted slightly, unsure about what he was thinking right now. She had sensed a bit of his jealousy earlier in regards to Sean - and definitely with Cathal just ow - but she had hoped that she had put that to rest. While she cared for Sean deeply, it wasn't anything like what she felt for Paul.

"I told him no. Every time he brings it up, actually. Because I can't ask him to go against his brother again. Not for me. And I know how much he hates the Shadow Court," she said, taking Paul's hands in hers. "And you know that I don't care for him like I care for you."

"I know," Paul said, smiling softly at her. "That whole no lying thing helps." Roisin smiled in relief and pressed her lips briefly against his.

She then started back towards the house.

"So… just how bad _is_ the Shadow Court?" Paul asked. Roisin glanced at him and sighed.

"I've only been there once and that was enough for me,'" she said, frowning for a moment.

It was stupid. She had just run away from the Summer Court and had no business going back into the Fae world. But Cathal had invited her and foolishly, she thought he could help her. That he might not be as bad as Sean had made him out to be.

And then she went and felt like she had been dropped into the bowels of hell.

At first, she had fun, of course. Cathal could be charming and he was handsome. Knew how to have a good time. He played the good host, impressing her with a massive feast and fancy surroundings. Great party. But as the entertainment grew more violent and the party more depraved, Roisin knew she never wanted to step foot in the Shadow Court ever again once she escaped it.

And that happened only after she nearly set his palace on fire after he got too handsy with her while attempting to convince her to be his queen. Cathal had never asked her back, keeping a safe distance from the volatile Summer princess.

"It started out okay - his palace is really nice. He plied me with a lot of fae wine. But then… things turned," she said, frowning. "Dancing got a bit wild and next thing I know, people are practically fucking on the dance floor. Well, that was a bit much, but I could handle that. But then the screams… they brought in these mortals and… the things they did to them."

Paul squeezed her hand and she looked up at him.

"I can't imagine what Sean went though," she said. "I nearly lost it after one night."

Paul wrapped an arm around her, pulling her closer and kissing the top of her head.

"We can add that to the list of places you never have to see again," he said, smiling down at her. Roisin chuckled and nodded. "Do you really think he's going to give us Tara?"

Roisin was silent a few moments, unsure of how to respond. She was still a bit stricken by the knowledge that Tara was there. She worried about what state she would be in when they did get her back. But at the same time, she also worried what Cathal would want in return for her.

"If she's there, he will," she said.

"You honestly think he'll keep his side of the bargain, though?" Paul then asked.

"He will if we make a deal he likes," she said grimly. "Hopefully it doesn't involve me having to do anything too disgusting. Not really into some of his… tastes..."

"Like I'd even let him touch you," Paul said with a snort. "You're not the only one with a temper, remember?" Roisin chuckled and leaned into his overheated body.

"Got that right," she said.

"Come on, the packs should be waiting on us…"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And now we know Sean's background story, though we'll get it from his side in the next chapter. Lot's going on with the fae, which is why it's sometimes hard to keep track of everything. And yea, I'm not sure why, but Cathal is kind of fun to write…
> 
> And I've made some changes to the last two chapters. I was going back and forth on something with fae – I thought about making them never monogamous, but then that was going to involve going back and rewriting/editing from the beginning. So now it's more so that Summer fae are very impulsive. Yes, fae believe in soulmates, but for the most part Summer fae fall in and out of love all the time. And that Roisin herself never really thought she would fall in love or want to be with one person, in part because of fae nature and part because she grew up royal and knew her marriage would be political. And also because of what happened with Rian. I also made some slight changes to Sean and Roisin's relationship (honestly, it was already pretty much there, I just changed some dialogue here and there). They very deeply care for each other, but it's not like Paul and Roisin. There's a history there and they are connected, but it's not necessarily romantic.
> 
> Thanks everyone for reading and following!


	24. Suddenly Last Summer

Paul stood next to Roisin in the living room as the packs milled around, talking to each other. Carlisle and Edward stood with Jacob, who finally appeared a tad bit less antagonistic. Though there were two missing faces. Sean had been locked up in his room since they got back and Mae was off… somewhere. Probably for the best since she didn't always have a lot to add and was more a distraction than anything. Cara had come into the room not long ago, sharing a tense look with Roisin before sitting on the couch and nodding.

"So… it's fairly certain someone in Shadow Court has Tara," Roisin said, her voice carrying over the noise. Everyone quieted down instantly.

For a moment, he got caught up in watching her. A sense of pride coursed through him. She was still tempering herself, he could tell. But power, it seemed to come to her naturally. Even if he didn't know about the prophecy, he would have noticed it. It was in the way that people always listened to what she said. The way she commanded the room wherever she was. Even if she was trying to blend in. How easily she took charge.

"Did you get anything out of the meeting?" Jacob asked, still a bit reluctant to defer to her.

"Our excursion yesterday pretty much confirmed that she's there. Their king - Cathal - said he didn't know about it, but is going to check with his court. And then he'll give her back… in exchange for something," she said, grimacing. Paul felt a surge of anger at that comment.

He was not going to let Cathal do a damn thing to her, if he could help it.

"What?" Carlisle asked, seeming more intrigued with the inner workings of the fae than finding Tara.

"It's not going to be little," she admitted. She then looked at Sam and then Jacob. "Whatever it is, I'll take care of it. It's my responsibility."

"We can't let you go into something dangerous," Sam said, frowning. "Paul's explained the imprint. It's the packs' responsibility to keep you safe."

"Cathal's not going to accept anything that doesn't involve me," she said, seeming to have accepted her fate. Paul took her hand and she looked up at him, smiling slightly and then looking back at the crowd.

"Why you?" Jacob asked.

Paul frowned at him, even if it was a fair question. He knew that Roisin didn't want to tell them everything, though he had by now told her they were going to find out regardless because of the pack telepathy. Or at least his pack would know, but he had a feeling that Sam would tell Jacob.

Even now, she seemed to be fighting with herself. He knew it took a lot for her to share everything with him. But he had promised that he would do his best to keep her secrets when he shifted, though it was going to be hard. But she had the right to tell what she wanted and when.

"Let's just say a lot of people in the Fae world are interested in me," she finally said. Jacob frowned at that.

"So all of this really is your fault," he stated, a look of vindication coming over his face. Paul glared at him though Roisin looked broken. This was not the place nor the time.

"Yea, it is," she said softly. She then met his gaze. "Tara wouldn't have been taken if we never came here. This… it's because of me… because of us."

She then took a deep breath and launched into an explanation of the prophecy. The marriage arrangement with the Winter Court. Why she ran away - well, not all of that, she left out some details, namely what Rian had done to her and that her brother had found her, but Paul still felt his blood boil at the thought of it.

"Cathal said that he didn't know if she was there, but we don't need the ability to lie to get around the truth," Roisin said, coming to the conclusion of her story. "Cathal is particularly good at it. And he has a lot of people to do his dirty work for him. Even if he didn't plan it, you can bet he'll use it to his advantage."

"So this could all be a ploy to get you to join his court," Jacob said, studying her closely. "Why don't you just do it, then?"

"Because it's a fucking shitshow there," Paul said firmly. Even though he hadn't seen it himself, from what Sean and Roisin had said, he knew that it wasn't pretty. And it was the last place he wanted her to go. Well, that and Winter Court. "And did you conveniently forget that she's my imprint?"

Jacob stared at him and then looked at Roisin. For a moment, his scowl softened. Paul looked at her as well, but whatever Jacob had seen was gone, instead replaced with determination.

"I'll do whatever I can to bring Tara back," she said. "I somehow created this mess and I'll fix it."

She then turned and walked to her bedroom, shutting the door behind her. Paul was torn between following her and punching Jacob for upsetting her.

"Nice going, Jacob," Embry said, shooting him a look. "Do you really have to keep this up? We know that they're not the bad guys here. And she's already upset as it is."

Paul shot a look of appreciation towards him, though he returned to glaring at Jacob.

"There's more she's not telling you. And before you ask, it's up to her if she wants you to know. But it's bad. Ro's been through hell," he said. He glanced over at Cara, who was looking towards Sean's bedroom with a worried look. "She's really putting herself on the line right now. Cathal… he could try to force her to marry him or join Shadow Court. And I know… if it came to it, she just might do it to save Tara and the rest of us."

He then rubbed his face, his head starting to ache slightly. He needed to get some air.

"Right, I guess that's it for now," he said, turning and walking through the doors to the verandah. Sighing, he walked over and sat in a chair, looking up at the night sky.

"I won't let her go with him, you know."

Paul jumped slightly and looked over, seeing Sean standing not far from him, a severe look on his face.

"She'll try to avoid it, but if it comes down to it, I'll go fight my brother and take back the throne before she agrees to anything like that with him," he said. "We can't let him have her."

"I believe you," Paul said with a sigh. Sean walked over and sat next to him, staring out into the dark. "Just… what happened? I mean, Ro told me that you got into a fight with him…"

Sean didn't look at him, but his shoulders tensed slightly.

"You could say that. Though it was more like a war," he finally said. "Shadow Court has always been… the way it is to an extent. Though Cathal's certainly made it worse. But there were things that I didn't agree with before that… when my father was in power… I'm not even sure why he named me his heir, to be honest." He looked down at his hands. "Well… I suppose I know. He didn't think Cathal would make a good leader. He's too… even by Shadow Court standards, he pushes it… But all Cathal has wanted was power. We were constantly in competition and it only got worse the older we got. Didn't help that our father always pitted us against each other. And always, for some reason, I won… which he hated…"

Paul sat up in his chair and glanced back inside, seeing that everyone was still there talking. He then looked back at Sean.

"But he knew our father would never give the throne to him. So he killed our parents and took it for himself," Sean said. "Then tried to kill me. I realized the only choice I had was to leave and really, I think part of me had wanted to leave long before that. I was just looking for an excuse."

Paul took a deep breath, thinking over everything he learned today.

"How bad was it?" he asked, not wanting to think about Roisin going to the Shadow Court. Sean glanced at him, smiling slightly.

"Not all of it was bad. In the beginning, it wasn't," he admitted. "There was a time when I wasn't so adverse to the things they did… There was a time when I liked it." He looked away from Paul, shame creeping into his eyes. "I wasn't the way that I am… I enjoyed hurting people. Other fae. It's killed or be killed in Shadow Court and I got really good at killing."

A hint of fear slithered through Paul at that statement. It wasn't so much anything Sean had done, but his shadows grew more pronounced, dancing around him in a tantalizing way. For a moment, Paul felt his blood run cold as everything in his body told him to run. To get far away from Sean. But then he remembered what Roisin had said. How he would do anything to protect her.

"But then, I started really looking at what was happening. And it made me sick. I just…" he continued.

"You aren't like that anymore," Paul found himself saying. "Roisin trusts you."

Sean glanced at him, a wry smile on his face as his shadows seemed to settle around him.

"Not many other fae do," he replied. "Mae still doesn't, though she won't admit it. Others… especially other courts… they would rather kill me on sight. Honestly… I know that I haven't known her all that long, but Ro's helped me a lot..."

"I trust you," Paul said, finding the statement was true. Sean's eyebrows rose slightly in surprise. "You're important to her, so I won't get in between that. And it's going to take both of us to keep her safe."

Sean nodded and looked away.

"She's more powerful than she thinks she is," he said. "She hasn't even tapped into her full potential. Not by a long shot."

"How do you know this?" Paul asked, intrigued. Sean chuckled.

"I've seen it," he said. "When she's particularly emotional - whatever that emotion is - it slips through. But I think it scares her sometimes. So she tries to keep it in control. Which isn't a bad idea and I've told her that. If she's not controlling it, well, things can happen…"

"Like the club fire," Paul said. Sean nodded.

"Some guy was taking advantage of a mortal friend of hers. She caught him in the act," Sean said. "That was one of the few times she really lost it. We almost didn't get everyone out in time… It was… incredible. But someone could have gotten seriously hurt…"

Paul glanced towards the house, for a moment caught up in wondering just what else Roisin was capable of. The prophecy had said that someday she would be a queen. It was pretty amazing, but at the same time, he couldn't help but wonder where that left him. He wasn't fae. And once he was no longer around vampires, he would be completely human again. He would start aging and someday he would die. While she would live forever. Well, hopefully.

"I don't know what's going to happen in the future," Sean said, getting his attention again. "But I do think that you're supposed to be part of hers."

"But… I'm just… I'm not like you," Paul said, frowning. "I mean, I know I want to be with her, but I'm not sure how I'm going to fit into her world."

It was the truth. He had gathered already there was a lot that he didn't know or understand. Paul was still wondering how this was all going to work out. He had the imprint and knew that he had fallen for her, but there was no telling how it would react in the future with her being fae. She had already hinted it was against her nature to stay settled with one person for long. Sean studied him a moment and then smiled.

"That's the thing about fate and destiny - which if you haven't learned by now, are big things in our world. We don't have all the answers, but it's sometimes a hell of a ride regardless," he said. "I don't understand it either but something tells me that you just might help with all this. The prophecy."

Paul's eyes widened as he glanced towards the house again. He honestly still hadn't had a chance to think about it. Wrap his head around it. Though he knew they needed to try and come up with something. They had a month before her brother would come after her again.

"We'll figure something out," Sean said, now pushing up from the chair. "Come on, I can hear your stomach growling."

Paul stood as well, following Sean towards the house. He hoped with everything in him that what Sean was right - that they would figure something out. And fast.

****

Roisin could hear laughter. She wasn't sure how long she had been in her room, but she thought everyone would leave when the meeting was over. And where had Mae been? She knew they were meeting with Cathal tonight. And here she thought Mae was fully on board with them.

But the longer she paced around her room, the more she felt suffocated. The more she thought about all the possibilities. The things Cathal might ask for. Things that she might not be able to say no, depending on how hard a bargain he would go far.

And then she thought about Tara in Shadow Court. That was the worst.

Roisin groaned and dropped down on her bed, her head in her hands. This really was her fault. Because they had come here, because they had drawn attention to themselves. Now people she cared about were getting hurt.

There was a knock at the door and Roisin looked up, wondering if it was Paul. She could use him about now.

"Come in," she called out.

The door opened, but rather than Paul, it was Jared. She must have looked surprised because he smiled and chuckled.

"I'm guessing you're in here torturing yourself. Why don't you join us? Sean and Cara got some food," he said.

Roisin was definitely not hungry, but maybe it wouldn't hurt to be around others. She nodded and stood, following him out of her room and across the living room to the kitchen, where she heard more loud laughter.

When they walked in, she looked over, seeing the table full. Jacob, Sam and most of the packs had left, but Embry, Quil and Seth were there with three solitary fae she had seen at a couple of the gatherings. She hadn't remembered inviting them over.

And then there was Paul. He looked over at her and she felt her heart speed up with their eyes met.

"Grab a plate. Before they eat everything."

She looked over, seeing Cara and Sean working on putting together more food. He gave her a reassuring smile before holding out a glass of fae wine.

"Looks like you need it," he said. She accepted it, happy to see him back to normal after their meeting with Cathal.

"When did they get here?" she asked, motioning to the fae.

"Just now," Cara said. "They're good folk. I've known them awhile." Roisin nodded slowly and then walked over to the table.

There were no more chairs open, but before she could go get another, Paul had grabbed her waist and pulled her down into his lap, her wine sloshing around slightly.

"Paul!" she shouted, surprised she could even smile right now.

But even with everything going on, she could feel it. The unseen force that pulled them together. Just being with him right now was calming her. Helping take the edge off her guilt for a bit. Her frustration and worry. She wasn't sure what was going to happen or how things were going to go down with Cathal and Tara - or her brother for that matter - but for a moment, she felt more at peace.

Was this what it was like? What it would always be like with Paul? She looked over at him a moment, watching as he joked around with Jared. He was smiling, his eyes twinkling. She could feel the warmth of his body and how it seemed to soothe her. Was it enough to keep her with him despite the fact she had never been with anyone like this before?

It was then that Roisin thought perhaps whoever or whatever had created the wolves, they got something right. They had managed to bring her to someone who was well suited for her. Someone that she loved.

Roisin looked away for a moment, her heart skipping a beat. Love? She barely knew him and yet she knew without a doubt that she was falling for him. Had fallen for him. And while he was vehement on protecting her, she would do anything to protect him as well. From her family. From Rian. From Cathal. Anything that could hurt him. He was hers and she was his. She knew without a doubt there was no one else. Could never be anyone else. She was now beyond wondering why. She didn't care.

"You okay there, space cadet?"

Roisin looked over, seeing Embry grin at her. In fact, the whole table was grinning at her - even the solitary fae. She looked over, finding Sean watching her, a soft smile on his face as Cara slid her arm around his waist. It was then that the weirdest thought came through her mind.

That this was her family.

Which also made no sense because she didn't even really know a lot of people here. It shocked her to her core for a moment.

"Sorry, just caught up in my thoughts," she said before taking a drink, trying not to meet anyone's eyes as her mind attempted to process what was going on.

"Yea, the whole reason to get you out here was to get you out of your thoughts," Jared said. She felt Paul begin to rub her back.

"Right," she said, nodding.

She then looked to the three solitary fae sitting there, trying to remember their names. While she knew the others likely saw them as normal humans - well, really good-looking humans - she could see them for what they were.

One had skin tinged in green, and soft, mossy-like hair along with muddy brown eyes. He caught her look and nodded towards her.

"Forgive me, I'm Brendan, and this is Caoimhe and Niamh," he said, motioning to his companions. Roisin smiled at them, nodding in their direction.

Caoimhe had long, light brown hair with reeds woven into it, her eyes bright and a seagreen. She was obviously some sort of water fae. Next to her sat Niamh, who had dark brown, rough skin like bark, though her face was very expressive.

"You weren't lying when you said they look different," Paul said softly in her ear. Roisin glanced at him and smiled, finding that he kept looking over at them.

"Some of us appear more human than others. But really, there are all sorts of fae," she replied, looking over at the additions.

"We heard Cara was here," Caoimhe said, gathering that Roisin was curious about why they were here. "Then we heard about the girl - your friend, yes?" Roisin nodded. "Did you seriously go against the Shadow King?"

Roisin's eyes widened slightly as she glanced around at the wolves, wondering which one had told them. Or would Cara have mentioned it? She looked over at the Shadow fae, finding her giving Sean a confused look. Okay, it appeared it wasn't her or Sean.

"Yea, well… I met with him. We're trying to negotiate her release," she said, looking back to the fae.

Caoimhe glanced at Niamh and Brendan, then grinned at Roisin.

"It seems the rumors are true then," she said. "You're no ordinary Summer fae, are you?"

The wolves glanced at her, all of them a bit unsure about what to say - she had literally just told them that she was in hiding from pretty much all fae and that in the mortal world only Sean, Cara and Mae knew who she truly was. Roisin fidgeted slightly, unsure if she could trust these newcomers. They had fae coming in and out before, though most had left the area after that first night with the wolves, wanting to stay out of whatever conflict could be coming.

"What rumors?" Roisin asked cautiously.

"That a powerful fae has settled here that will change everything," Brendan said. "Maybe finally bring peace to the Fae world. I just wish Cara had mentioned that she knew you."

"I… uh…"

"Damn right. Ro's fucking awesome," Embry proclaimed loudly with a grin. Roisin grimaced as Paul shot a look at him. "Oh… shit… sorry…"

"Looks like word was getting around even with our best efforts," Sean said, now moving closer, his dark eyes fixed on the three fae. They looked at him warily as his shadows spread out in a protective stance around him, Roisin and Paul.

"We're not here to fight you. We're here to join you," Caoimhe said quickly.

"Why?" Roisin asked.

"Because we want to follow someone who actually cares. Who can end all the fighting. Who can do better," Brendan said. "You are willing to go this far for a mortal friend. We think that means you will do much more for your own kind."

Immediately, Roisin shot up out of Paul's lap.

"I don't know what you heard, but I'm not leading anything. I'm just trying to get my friend back and then we're leaving," she said. The three stared at her calmly, almost as though they knew something she didn't.

"Ah… I saw it. For a moment. You let your guard slip," Niamh said, smiling. "No wonder she had no fear in front of the Shadow king."

"What makes you think I'm not afraid?" Roisin asked.

The wolves had now fallen completely silent, and were shifting around in their chairs, glancing nervously at each other.

"Oh, you are… but your strength is greater than your fear. And your desire to do what is right," Niamh said. She then gave Roisin a short nod. "Whatever happens, you have us to stand with you. Or fight with you."

Roisin just blinked. What the hell was going on here? She was just trying to get Tara back, not launch a war. Where were they even getting any of this? Oh shit. The prophecy. Someone had told them or they had figured out who she was.

"Personally, I have a bit of a bone to pick with some of Cathal's kin," Brendan said casually.

"I wouldn't mind kicking Winter's ass a bit," Caoimhe added.

"Whoa… you all need to… slow the fuck down. I'm not planning a battle or war," Roisin said, though she could already see the shift in the wolves' eyes. Even Paul's. Damnit. Now they were aching for a fight too.

She couldn't protect all of them.

"You're not, but someone else is. It will affect us all at some point. And we choose to follow you," Niamh said. She then stood and bowed towards Roisin. Her mouth dropped open as the other two did the same.

"Do we need to bow too?" Quil whispered loudly to Embry, who just gave him an exasperated look.

"No one needs to bow. I'm not… this isn't me," Roisin said. She then spun on her toes and left the kitchen. She knew Paul was following, and that was fine. Honestly, she could use a bit of him calming her down right now.

Once she reached her room she started pacing as Paul shut the door and leaned against it.

"This is not… I'm not doing this," she said, nearly shouting as she paced. "This is why I ran away from the Fae world. To get away from… this!"

"I thought it was to get away from Rian," Paul said calmly. Roisin stopped and looked over at him.

"Well, yea, but I don't want to start a war here! I wouldn't know the first thing about any of that," she replied. Paul studied her a few moments and then pushed off the door, walking towards her.

"Sounds like you're afraid," he said.

"Well, of course-"

"Of the prophecy, Ro. Not Rian or Cathal. You're afraid that the prophecy is going to come true and you'll have to lead," he said softly, but firmly. "To be honest, from where I stand, I think you'll be just fine."

"What do you know about fae politics?" she scoffed. He had no idea what it was really like. The manipulation. Using everyone - even your own family - as pawns. She couldn't do that. Wouldn't.

And then trying to keep an entire court alive and happy. Not to mention making nice with the other courts so they wouldn't attack. She wasn't ready for this. Even if Rian had turned out to be decent, she might have still run away to avoid becoming queen. Despite the fact that her entire life up until she ran away had been preparing her for that very thing.

Paul reached out and took her hands, then yanked her towards him as he wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly against him. For a moment, she considered pushing him away, but then gave up and leaned her head against his chest.

"No one's making you queen tonight," Paul said.

"Need a court for that," she said with a soft snort.

"But I do think you will be a great one… someday," he replied. Roisin rolled her eyes and looked up at him.

"You realize that would mean I'd have to go back to the Fae world. That's where all the courts are," she said softly. Paul stared down at her a moment, concern entering his eyes. He then smiled and shrugged.

"Looks like I'm going to be the first wolf to settle in the Fae world then," he said lightly.

Roisin stared at him a few moments, before smiling and then kissing him gently on the lips. She knew he was serious about staying at her side, though she didn't think that he had stopped to seriously think about it - about the consequences. Well, some he didn't know, but she would tell him. There really was a lot to tell him.

For now, it could wait. Like he said, no one was making her queen tonight. And well, all they could do now was wait. Wait for Cathal to strike… or make an offer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise – from here out, Jacob stops being such an ass. Just had to get that last bit out of his system (he makes a pretty decent turn around starting in the next chapter and he and Roisin finally have a heart-to-heart in the one after that). And I realized that I need to do a lot of editing on chapter 26 and 27 before I can finish up chapter 28 – I lost sight a bit of Roisin and Paul's emotional states and went off in a direction a bit that I didn't intend to go. The story points are there, just need to work on dialogue and such a bit more. Had a headache all day which made focusing on work and then working on writing a bit harder. But we're still close to the finish!
> 
> Thanks everyone for reading and following!


	25. Shadows on the Wall

Roisin attempted to hold her grumbling to a minimum, though it was proving hard as she made her way through the crowded hallway at Forks High School, her arms full of a box with everything from Mae's locker. True, she had volunteered, unable to handle the stress of sitting around and waiting for Cathal - it had been a few days now - but that was before she realized just how much shit Mae had somehow accumulated in her locker.

And well, Sean, Cara and Mae had set out on a COSTCO run, seeing as the wolves pretty much came by all the time now and a few more fae had decided to invite themselves to stay. It was driving Roisin up the wall having the house constantly full, and she needed to get away from all of it. Especially since Paul was at work and couldn't distract her.

Sighing, she finally made it to her own locker and opened it, thankful that it wasn't nearly so full and better organized than Mae's. She had already dropped off all of her and Mae's books and a bunch of documents at the office so all she needed to do was to clear this out and then she was done. Maybe she would go bug Paul at work since she was in town.

Feeling there was no point to keeping up the school ruse since they were going to be leaving as soon as they got Tara back, Sean had withdrawn them both from Forks High. And honestly, they had missed a couple weeks by now. Not to mention Roisin was fairly sure she wouldn't be able to focus on anything outside of the current trouble. As it was they had a near nightly argument over where to go next that usually ended with Mae rushing to her room and slamming her door shut. It was the only time she showed up and attempted to be somewhat helpful. Truthfully, Roisin wasn't completely sure just where she got off to, but as long as she was staying out of trouble, she didn't mind.

"Oh my god, Ro!"

She stopped and turned, seeing Megan and Trey quickly walk up to her. She felt a twinge of guilt - in the midst of everything going on, she had forgotten to check in with them lately. She wrapped her arms around Megan in a tight hug as soon as she stepped up to her.

"How are you doing?" Megan asked. Roisin's eyebrows rose in surprise. Meg had been the one who was injured - had seen Tara disappear - and she was worried about Roisin?

"I'm okay," she said. "I'm more worried about how you're doing."

"Getting there," Megan said, glancing at Trey and then back at Roisin. "Tara's parents… they think they might hold a service for her next week. You'll be there, right?"

Roisin nodded, though she hoped that before that she would bring Tara home and there wouldn't have to be a service at all.

"I'll do my best," she replied.

"What are you doing?" Trey asked, pointing to the box. Roisin looked down at it and then back up at them, guilt twisting around in her gut. Right. How to explain this? "Are you dropping out?"

"We… might be moving soon," Roisin said. Both Megan and Trey's faces fell as sadness entered their eyes. "But we're not leaving yet. So we can try and hang out… and I won't leave without saying goodbye."

Granted, even she knew better than to promise that. There was no telling in what fashion they would be leaving. Especially as it clearly depended on what happened with Tara.

"Well, we've got some time before class. Do you need help?" Megan asked, her eyes returning to the locker.

Roisin opened her mouth to accept the help when she saw a dark mass of shadows converging down the hall. Her eyes drifted to look just beyond Megan and she froze. Cathal appeared, a sinister smirk on his face as he caught her staring at him. Raising an eyebrow, he gave her a short wave with his fingers.

What the hell was he doing here? Of all the places for him to show up.

"Ro?"

"Sorry, you know. It's fine. I got this. You should probably get to class," Roisin said, turning to look at Megan and Trey. "Really. It's okay."

The two gave her an odd look but nodded.

"Give me a call later, okay?" Megan asked. Roisin nodded and gave them a strained smile, urging them silently to get out of the hallway quickly.

Pretending that everything was fine, she turned to her locker and quickly dumped everything into the box. Before she bent over to pick it up, she locked eyes with Cathal again and motioned slightly with her head for him to follow her. Whatever was going on, she wanted him as far away from the students as she could get. Preferably out of the school completely.

She then picked up the box and turned, making her way through the few students left straggling just before the bell. Picking up her pace, she glanced over her shoulder, seeing Cathal following at a leisurely pace, glancing around here and there to check out people.

Roisin breathed a sigh of relief when she darted out the doors to the parking lot just as the bell rang, finding it empty. In the next instant she was at her car, thankful she had parked on the far side, tossing the box into the backseat. When she shut the door, Cathal was leisurely leaning against the driver door, nearly causing her to jump even though she knew he had been behind her. Glancing around to make sure the coast was clear, Roisin quickly fell unseen before meeting Cathal's gaze.

She should have known he would track her down and wait until she was alone to speak with her.

"You have news for me?" she asked, crossing her arms in front of her.

Cathal chuckled as he swirled some of his shadows around his finger, his dark eyes not leaving her.

"What? No 'hello,' or 'how have you been'?" he asked. "Being away from court really has taken a big hit on your manners." Roisin just glared at him. "Very well."

He pushed off from the car and turned to her.

"What would you do if I told you I had your precious mortal in my possession?" he asked. Roisin tried hard not to react, but her heart was beginning to pound as he took another step towards her. He reached out and lightly dragged his finger down her cheek. "What would you give… for her?"

"I'm not joining your court," Roisin said immediately. "I told you that was off the table."

"Shame. You would really let her waste away with all the other mortals in Shadow Court. All because of your pride?" he said before tsking, tilting his head to the side. "I'm a bit disappointed. That you would put your own happiness over saving your friend. Must not mean much to you… Or well… could mean that you're perfect to be Shadow queen..."

Roisin narrowed her eyes at him, though silently cursed herself for thinking that he might consider something - anything - else. Maybe she should have given into his request in the forest. Surely she could survive one night with him. Then again, there was no way that would have ended well. Especially if he insisted she go to the Shadow Court with him. She didn't trust that he wouldn't try something to make her stay forever.

"I thought you were reasonable. Surely there's something else you want," Roisin said, quickly trying to think of a way out of this.

Cathal's eyes lit up. Almost as though he was expecting her to say that very thing. He leaned closer to her and Roisin fought to not back down.

"You know… I have been looking for someone to take care of a pesky little problem for me," he said smoothly, a sinister smile spreading across his face as the shadows swelled around them. Roisin felt her stomach sink. "I think it's an even trade… my brother - dead - for your very alive human."

Roisin closed her eyes a moment. She couldn't do it. Kill Sean? But she desperately needed to get Tara back. She needed to think of something. Fast.

"At least tell me she's unharmed," she said, opening her eyes. Cathal's grin grew. He shrugged.

"I can't attest for what happened to her before I found her. But I _can_ say that I didn't do anything to harm her," he replied.

Which basically told Roisin that there was no telling what sort of hell Tara had been through. Sure, _he_ hadn't hurt her. But that didn't mean one of his minions hadn't.

"So, we have a deal then. You kill Sean and I'll give you the mortal back," Cathal said. Roisin frowned. She hadn't agreed to anything. "Ah… should have known… you're going to fight me on that one too… Really, just why is it you're so attached to my brother? I assure you, I'm far better than he is..."

Roisin clenched her hands into fists, her frustration and anger welling up inside her into a frenzy.

"Why do you want him dead? He left. He doesn't want Shadow Court," she said, fighting to keep in control.

Cathal's expression darkened as he narrowed his eyes at her, his shadows swirling around them almost like a tornado. It grew harder to breath as his rage filled the air, making it heavy.

"Because as long as he's still alive, there are others who think he'll come back. That he'll take what's mine," he growled at her.

"Or is it because you know that you can't take him on yourself? That you'll always be weaker than him," Roisin shot back.

Fuck, she really shouldn't have said that. But it was too late to take it back. And well, Roisin was aching for a good fight, if she was being honest. She smirked at him, feeling her own power welling up in her, pushing back at his. For a moment, Cathal looked confused, glancing around as though he thought they weren't alone.

"Come on, if you want a fight, fight _me_. If I win, you give me Tara back - alive and no further harmed," she said, daring him to accept.

"And if I win?" he asked. Roisin didn't reply. "You give me Sean. Or yourself. I don't really care which. Actually, no. I do care. As much as I'd love my brother dead, I know how much it will pain him to know that you're with me. In fact, I almost like that better."

An evil grin spread across his face as Roisin weighed her options. He was strong, yes, but she was too. Maybe it was about time she started believing in that damn prophecy.

"What do you say, Ro?"

"Let's do this."

****

Paul sighed as he walked back into the storeroom to get another box of new gear that just came in that needed to be scanned into the computer. He couldn't but feel irked that he had to be here. He wanted to be back at the McLaren house with Roisin. Even though he knew she wasn't far, he still felt on edge being away from her. Knowing that at any second her brother, or Rian, or even Cathal could show up and try to take her away or hurt her.

He wanted to be at her side at all times. Just to make sure that she would be safe. Why was he even working anymore? It wasn't as though he was going to be here that much longer. As soon as they got Tara back, he fully intended to go on the run with Sean, Mae and Roisin. Though he had yet to share this information with his dad. He should probably do that. Truthfully, he hadn't even really given himself much time to stop and think about what he was doing.

He was going to be leaving behind everything he ever knew.

Paul stopped for a moment, the thought really sinking in. While he wanted nothing more than to always be with Roisin, he hadn't really considered the implications. He would be leaving the only place he had ever lived. The only people he had ever known. The packs. And being away from here… he'd lose his ability to shift unless there were bloodsuckers around. Or at least he figured he would.

In an instant, he was completely overwhelmed by it. This wasn't going to be some sort of extended vacation. This was going on the run. Never staying in one place for long. Changing identities. Constantly looking over his shoulder until they could figure a way around the deal with Rian.

Was he ready for this?

Part of him felt that he was. He knew that he loved Roisin - okay, _now_ he could admit it to himself - and wanted to always be with her. To protect her. But it wasn't going to be all sunshine and rainbows. And even though they imprinted, it wasn't necessarily guaranteed that things would work out. Any manner of things could go wrong. As he was learning, there were still many things he didn't know about fae. What's more, if this prophecy came true, she would go back to the Fae world. Where did that leave him? Could he even go with her? If he listened to Mae, it sounded like he couldn't. But no one had actually said it was impossible. And Roisin hadn't fought him when he suggested it.

That brought a whole new mess. Was he willing to give up everything to live in the Fae world? Sure he was planning to go on the run with her, but that was in this world where he could at least still keep in touch with everyone. Could he truly follow her to another world?

Paul struggled to breathe for a moment, before he focused his thoughts on Roisin. He loved her. Wanted to be with her. And she wanted to be with him. They were imprints. That was enough.

He then bent down and picked up the box, walking back out into the main room of the store.

"Okay, so don't be mad… but I think I screwed up the computer again," Mike said, bent over the screen and mashing at the keys.

Paul rolled his eyes, feeling his anger simmering just under the surface.

"For the love of-"

He suddenly froze, something pinging inside him. Paul looked towards the doors. He wasn't sure just what it was, but a feeling that something was very wrong came over him.

"You okay there, buddy?" Mike asked.

Paul seized a bit, the feeling coming on stronger. He then dropped the box and started towards the door, vaguely aware that Mike was shouting something at him. He ignored it. He wasn't completely sure why or how, but he knew that Roisin was in trouble. He needed to find her. Get to her. Now.

"YOU CAN'T JUST LEAVE!" Mike shouted.

"Fucking watch me," Paul shouted back as he shoved the door open. He stopped for a moment on the sidewalk, looking around. He then closed his eyes and took a deep breath through his nose.

He then opened his eyes, looking in the direction towards the high school. Without another thought, he took off in a sprint, hoping he wouldn't be too late.

****

Roisin was breathing heavily, but she couldn't help the grin that came over her face as she squared off with the Shadow king. She had managed to move them to the empty football field, not wanting to chance accidentally hurting anyone, though she had to admit it was still a risky move. But at the moment she didn't care as she stared him down.

Goddess, it had been such a long time since she fought like this. It felt good. Really good. She was finally working off some of her frustration.

Cathal reached up and brushed his fingers against his cheek, pulling them away to see the bright red blood there, seeming amused.

"Didn't expect you to draw first blood," he said, before looking back at her. "Oh, it's going to be so much fun when I beat you… the things I have in store for you, little princess. For _us_."

"Try me," she said through gritted teeth.

Before he could say anything further, she launched towards him. Cathal easily moved away, but her reflexes were fast and she was once again grabbing him and tossing him halfway down the field. Almost before he stopped, he was back up and reaching for her, but she quickly kicked out, once again shoving him away before he could grab her.

It was a whirlwind of motion - his shadows would attempt to blind her, but Roisin would move away, sending as much heat towards the king as she could. After a while, she could see him starting to get frustrated when he couldn't even land a proper punch or kick.

Finally, she had him by the neck, squeezing as strongly as she could. Cathal started laughing, but then she sent as much heat to her hand as she could, watching his eyes widened as he started clawing at her. She could feel it. She was going to win. And then she would get Tara back. This would be over.

Then suddenly, Cathal reached out, managing to grab her own neck and for a moment, she was frozen. Before her eyes, all she saw was a frozen tundra, the wind whipping her hair around her as the bitter cold bit into her skin. Filled her veins. No. She had to fight this.

"Roooooisiiinn," a voice said playfully. It sent chills down her back.

Suddenly, Rian was before her, a malicious smile on his face as he gripped her throat, ice starting to spread to the rest of her body. Roisin gasped for air, feeling her limbs begin to freeze into place. She locked onto his ice blue eyes, the wind whipping at his short white blonde hair.

No. This was all in her head. She couldn't believe it. She had to fight back. This was just one of Cathal's tricks.

Roisin closed her eyes, locking onto her anger, which was starting to fuel her. Her eyes flew open and she once again saw Cathal before her, a look of shock starting to come over his face. She could feel the warmth begin to spread through her body like a roaring fire.

But just as she started to smile, a large mass came shooting from her side. As she turned to look, a giant dark silver wolf leapt over, latching on to Cathal and pulling him away with such a force that she fell back to the ground.

When she looked back up, she saw Paul - well Paul's wolf - snarling over Cathal, which he had pinned to the ground. The Shadow king only grinned up at him before looking over at Roisin.

No, he couldn't do that. _She_ had to win. Not Paul. It was the only way the deal would work.

Growling, she shoved herself back up to her feet, already moving towards them. But Cathal had launched Paul into the air, a loud squeal sounding from his snout as he hit the ground hard. She wasn't sure, but was pretty certain she had heard a crack of sorts.

Roisin slid to a stop, for a moment torn between continuing the fight and going to make sure that Paul was okay. Cathal's laughter got her attention though.

"A wolf? That's just… wow, Ro. Never knew _that's_ what you were into," he replied. Roisin started towards him, but stopped when he put his hand up. "That's a draw. Meaning, sadly, you don't get to come with me. But you also won't be getting your mortal back. I'll contact you with new terms."

He then turned and was gone. Roisin almost started after him but stopped when she heard Paul - human Paul - groaning loudly in pain. Sighing, she turned and rushed over him, causing Paul to flinch at her sudden appearance at his side. He was gripping his arm, his face contorted in pain.

"Where does it hurt?" she asked, for a moment her concern winning out over her anger.

"My shoulder," he said. She looked at it and then around the field, realizing that even though no one could see her, they very much would see a naked Paul grimacing in pain in the middle of the football field.

"Okay, just… keep your eyes closed. I don't want you vomiting on me," she said, looking back down at him.

"Ro… what are you-"

She didn't give him a change to finish as she wrapped her arms around him, her wings now beating quickly, and they were gone.

****

Roisin paced around the great room, every so often hearing a shout from her bedroom that had her stopping and looking over at her shut door, worrying about what was going on in there.

As soon as they arrived back, she had put Paul in her bed and called Carlisle, remembering that he was a doctor. He had shown up not long after, a bag of medical supplies in hand, and went straight in. Brendan had gone in as well - popping up from wherever he had been - saying something about how he had skills as a healer.

"I can't believe you fucking did that," Sean said. She looked over, seeing him glaring at her. "You fought Cathal? Why?!"

"Because it was the best way to get Tara back," she shouted back.

And well, offering herself was better than offering Sean. She knew that there was no way she could kill him. And there was no way that he would remain alive if Cathal got his hands on him.

Sean ran his fingers roughly through his hair, his shadows more pronounced as he paced away from her.

"And what if you lost? What did he ask for in return?" he shouted, turning to look at her.

"Me," she said. Sean turned away, growling in frustration. "But I would have won! I had him until Paul showed up!"

"Yea, and look what happened, Ro! Cathal could have easily killed him!" Sean shouted, pointing towards the door. "Why don't you stop and think about things?!"

"I didn't know Paul would be there! And I certainly didn't ask him to show up!" she roared back at him.

"How is he?"

They both stopped their shouting match, looking over to see Jacob and Sam walking into the living room. Roisin rolled her eyes and turned away, starting to pace.

"What happened?" Jacob asked.

"Well, apparently Ro decided the best course of action was to take on Cathal. On her own," Sean said viciously. "And then Paul jumped in and got hurt. Thank the goddesses Cathal called it a draw."

"I told you I had-"

"But you almost didn't! And then where would we be?! You would be forced to go to Shadow Court and be subjected to whatever hell Cathal would rain down on you and there's not a goddamn thing any of us could do!" Sean shouted, cutting her off. Roisin didn't say anything, her eyebrows shooting up. "Did you even stop and think what would have happened if you lost?! What it would do to Mae? To Paul? To _me_?"

Roisin still couldn't speak. Just blinked at him. Sean sighed and shook his head.

"I know you don't want to start a war. And you were trying to take care of this on your own because you think it's all your fault, but fuck, Ro. You very well would have had a damn war, because there's no way I or Paul would have let him keep you," Sean said.

He stared at her a few moments before turning and suddenly he was gone. The slamming door the only indication of where he went.

"You fought Cathal on your own?" Jacob asked, appearing stunned. Roisin looked over at him and nodded.

"He has Tara. First… he wanted me to go with him. Then he wanted me to kill Sean. I thought offering to fight him was the best course of action," she said. "It was better than the other options. I honestly have no idea how Paul found out and showed up."

She looked towards her bedroom door, missing the look that went between Sam and Jacob. Thankfully, Carlisle and Brendan stepped out at that moment and she rushed over to him, Carlisle having to take a slight step back.

"He's fine," he said. "His shoulder is back in place and Brendan was able to heal the break, though it would have healed on its own pretty quickly."

"I took away most of the pain as well, though… you have a strong one," Brendan said, a smile on his face.

"Thanks," Roisin said, suddenly feeling guilty again. Paul only got hurt because of her. Everything today was her fault.

"He's asking for you," Carlisle said. Roisin nodded and took a deep breath.

"Okay…"

****

Paul rubbed his shoulder, not quite believing how much pain he had been in before Brendan did something with his hands. He then looked towards the door, seeing it open. Roisin stepped in and shut it, then leaned against it.

"They said you were better," she said. He offered her a smile, not wanting her to worry about him. She already looked as though she thought this was all her fault.

Which it wasn't. She hadn't known that he would show up. Hell, he was still curious about how he had known, but figured it was something to do with their imprint. And as soon as he did, his protective instincts had taken over, causing him to shift almost immediately.

"I'm fine. Whatever Brendan did, it's pretty good. Helped Carlisle," he said, dropping his hand into his lap.

"How did you know where I was?" she asked, still not moving closer. He wished she would come over to him. He really wanted nothing more than to feel her in his arms right now.

"I… I just felt something. That you were in danger. So I left the store and tracked you to the high school. Must be the imprint," he said. Roisin nodded. "Why were you fighting Cathal? Did he try to take you?"

Roisin shook her head and looked away, almost as if she didn't want to tell him.

"Ro… what happened?"

"I made a deal with Cathal. We would fight. If I won, he would give me Tara," she said, still not looking at him.

"And if you lost?" he asked, already starting to feel a bit of anger seep in. God, he hoped she wasn't about to say what he thought she was.

"I would go with him," she said softly, her eyes flicking over to look at him.

Paul sat up and rubbed his face, willing himself to stay calm. She had only done what everyone had been saying she would do. Offer up herself in return for Tara, but at the same time, just the thought of Cathal getting his hands on her. On hurting Roisin. It was difficult to keep his cool.

But even this was nothing like what he felt when he got to the football field and saw Cathal with his hand around Roisin's neck. The grin on his face as his shadows swirled around them. As though he knew he was winning. While Paul was sure he wouldn't kill her - that would defeat the purpose - for a moment he had lost it, thinking he just might.

"I did what I had to do. If I hadn't offered the fight… he wanted me to kill Sean," she said, a bit of anger in her voice. He looked up, seeing she was now at the end of the bed, her eyes starting to light up. "And I had him. I was so close to winning."

"Not from where I stood," Paul said, frowning at her as he fought to keep his voice in check. He wasn't angry with her, but it was so damn hard to shove it off.

He could have lost Roisin.

Roisin scoffed and rolled her eyes.

"I really did have him!" she shouted. "If you hadn't jumped in, we would have Tara back right now!"

"We don't know that," Paul replied.

" _I_ know that!" she continued to shout. "I was _so_ close-"

"Ro, it looked like he was killing you!" Paul roared, finally giving into his anger and jumping out of the bed, his injured shoulder be damned. And well, thank god someone had given him pajama pants to wear, otherwise this conversation would have taken on a whole other level of awkward. He walked over and gripped her arms, forcing her to look up at him. "He had his hands around your neck and you… you were off somewhere else - struggling to breathe. I thought I was about to lose the woman I love!"

Roisin's mouth dropped open as she stared up at him a few moments, stunned. Finally, Paul managed to swallow the rage coursing through him and pulled her to his chest.

"I seriously thought I was about to lose you… one way or another," he said, his voice a bit strangled. "I can't lose you."

He felt Roisin's arms come around him, holding onto him tightly.

"I know that you think this is your fault and that it was the best way… and… maybe it was… And me getting hurt definitely wasn't your fault, but I also know that I can't… I can't breathe without you," he said. He ventured a look down at her, seeing her peer up at him with tears in her eyes. "I love you."

"I love you too," she whispered. "I'm sorry… I should have…" She stopped and shook her head. "I'm sorry you got hurt. And I'm sorry that you went through that. But... I made the best choice."

Paul reached up and held her face gently in his hands.

"I know," he replied. "I get it. I would have done the same thing. If it was you… or even someone else in the packs."

"Even Jacob?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at him as a small smile came across her face. Paul rolled his eyes.

"Maybe," he muttered. Roisin chuckled. "Just… next time… maybe include us in the decision-making process?"

"I can't make you any promises. But I can try," she replied. Paul smiled. He figured as much. "Are you in any pain?"

"Not really," he said. "Seriously… we could definitely use someone like Brendan all the time. Took the pain away instantly." A grin slowly slid across her face. "Ro…"

Before he could finish his thought, her lips were on his and in an instant, the burning of his anger was replaced with a different kind of burning altogether. He wasn't exactly sure how, but suddenly, he found himself on his back on her bed. Roisin broke off the kiss, sitting up as she pulled her shirt off.

It was hard to keep his thoughts straight for a moment as she leaned back down and kissed him again. He was vaguely aware that there might be others in the house. But even that thought seemed to evaporate as he pulled her closer, running his hands up and down her sides.

She then pulled away again, hovering just above him, her eyes glowing.

"I love you," she breathed.

"I love you too…"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FINALLY! They both say the 'L' word. Though man, looking back at how much time has passed, it's not as much as I thought writing this. But hey, thankfully I can blame that on the imprint.
> 
> And if you stay tuned there is a bonus racy chapter that picks up right where this one leaves off. Though as with my other story where I did something similar, it won't detract from the story if you want to skip it.
> 
> I got a lot of plotting and writing done today, though realized I needed another chapter in between chapters 27 and 28 – seriously, I don't know why I cram so much action/suspense/tension/whatever in the last few chapters of every story I write - so I still have to write the new chapter 28, but I've got the new chapter 29 written and half of chapter 30. So as long as I stick to my current writing pace, then I should be able to continue posting one chapter a day.
> 
> AND if you like what I've done with fae, please pop over to WattPad to read my original story "The Witch of Marshallville" which also includes a lot of fae lore, though there I go more traditional and call them seelies (and that's the reason I already had a lot of fae lore on hand for this one, though I admit, I am currently finishing up the Wicked Lovely series by Melissa Marr, which also influenced me a lot in this one, but not in the original fiction). I only have eight or nine chapters up, but after this story, I'm super motivated to go work on it more and actually have a good amount more than that written, so will probably post more chapters soon. My username there is EmmaKalka for my original fiction.
> 
> Thanks everyone for reading and following!


	26. Bonus Chapter - Love in the Moonlight

Warmth enveloped Roisin as she felt Paul’s body on top of hers, moving against hers. She wasn’t completely sure if it was her, him or both, but she didn’t care as he began kissing her neck and her fingers of one hand tangled in his hair, while her other traversed the large expanse of his back. She could feel him shudder at her touch.

It was beyond anything she had felt before. She had been with others, of course. She was fae. But there was something about the way Paul touched her, as though he knew just what to do to stoke the flames inside her. 

As if he was made just for her. Or maybe it was vice versa. Or both. She didn’t really care at the moment.

Roisin was starting to forget everything. That she had been in the fight and nearly lost. That Paul had gotten hurt. That she had just confessed she loved him - which she knew that she did, but didn’t understand how it could happen so quickly. All that mattered was this moment and the things he was doing to her. Being here with him.

She felt him begin to move, his lips and tongue traveling down her neck to her collarbone, and then slowly continuing to the valley between her breasts. She lifted her torso from the bed, smiling as she felt his hand snake around behind her and undo the clasp of her bra. Paul pushed away from her as she slid it off and tossed it aside.

For a moment he just stared at her, his eyes wide in awe. He then bent down and kissed her gently on the lips, his body once again against hers. Roisin wrapped her arms around him, pulling him close as she lifted her hips, rubbing against him. A soft growl sounded in his throat and he quickly kissed his way back down to where he left off. 

A gasp left her lips as his mouth descended to her right breast, his tongue making circles around her nipple before he nipped it gently, teasing it into hardness as his fingers played with her other. She closed her eyes, her back arching off the bed again as wave after wave of sensations poured over her. And she wasn’t even completely naked yet. Something she wanted to quickly change.

Almost as though he read her mind, Paul’s mouth began a slow, tortuous journey lower, moving across her stomach, though stopping momentarily at her belly button, his tongue darting out and making her squirm yet again. When he began moving again, this time, she felt his hands at her jeans, popping the button open and slowly lowering her zipper. She looked down, locking eyes with him as he began to pull her jeans and underwear off, leaving heated kisses down one leg.

As soon as he had pulled them completely off, he stood, dropping the clothing items on the floor. She propped herself up on her elbows, watching as he closed his eyes a moment, taking a deep breath through his nose. When his eyes opened, they were a tad shade darker as a smirk played across his lips as he took her in. A spike of anticipation coursed through Roisin as she shivered slightly, feeling herself get even wetter. He reached down and almost as slowly as he had kissed her body, he slid his pajama pants down, then stepped out of them.

Roisin’s eyes widened slightly as they traveled down his broad, muscled chest and then landed on his fully engorged member, standing out proudly from his body. Her breath hitched slightly as she felt a jolt of desire in her core, and chewed slightly on her lower lip as her eyes traveled back up to his. 

Goddess, she needed to feel him inside her now. And hopefully no one would interrupt this time.

Paul crouched down on the bed, lifting her other leg and starting to kiss his way back up, his eyes never leaving hers. Her breathing became heavier the closer he worked his way to her aching core. She almost huffed in frustration, but managed to stop herself. Though she must have made some noise because Paul chuckled softly.

“Patience, Ro… I want to taste you first,” he murmured. 

Roisin’s eyes widened as he continued his ascent, her head falling back and her eyes sliding closed the closer he got. He kissed the flat expanse of skin just below her belly button, conjuring a groan of frustration as she felt his lips everywhere except where she wanted them.

Her eyes then flew open as she felt his tongue glide up her slit, her body immediately beginning to shiver. Finally, it circled her clit before he sucked it into his mouth and a moan of satisfaction broke forth. Her body reacted all on its own, her fingers tangling in his hair as her hips rose, encouraging him. Already a delightful buzz was pulsing through her body, almost as though it was waking up and coming alive for the first time.

Another moan left her lips when she felt him slide one finger inside her, curling as he slowly pumped in and out, searching for that spot inside her that would send her over. Her hips increased the rhythm of their thrusts as she felt another finger and his tongue continued to tease her sensitive nub. 

By the goddess, sex had never felt this good. But yet, it wasn’t enough. She needed more. 

“Paul,” she managed to get out in between strangled breaths. “Paul… I need… you…”

She arched her back, her mouth falling open as his fingers brushed over the sensitive spot deep inside. She felt and heard his chuckle, which only sent her into more spasms. But then his lips and his fingers were gone. She almost growled in frustration, but instead, her eyes opened as she watched him crawl up her body, shaking in anticipation for what was to come.

He propped himself over her on one elbow as his other hand reached down, positioning himself. She felt his head brushing over her entrance.

“Goddess, Paul,” she moaned. He just grinned in response and bent down, taking her lips in a hungry kiss.

She could taste herself on his tongue as she wrapped her arms around him and pulled him closer. It was then that he pushed into her, both of them gasping in unison as he slowly filled her. For a moment, he stayed there unmoving, staring down into her eyes as they breathed heavily. 

“I love you, Ro,” he whispered.

“I love you, too.”

He returned his lips to hers in a tender kiss as he began to move, slowly pulling back and then thrusting back in. Roisin moaned against his lips, raising her hips to meet his, easily falling into his rhythm. Her body molded against his naturally as her hands roamed his back and then down, grasping his ass and urging him to go faster. He quickened his pace, but then Roisin felt his thumb begin to massage her clit and she swore she saw stars. 

Her entire body was buzzing with electricity, jolts of pleasure coursing through her in increasing increments as they both began to move faster. She knew in that moment that she could never be with anyone else again. Paul was truly hers and she was truly his.

With relative ease, she then flipped him over onto his back, sitting up as she grinned down at him. 

“My turn,” she whispered.

****

Paul was pretty sure his mouth was hanging open as he stared up at Roisin as she started riding him. The sensation of being inside her was overwhelming enough, but that added to the heat of her touch that was leaving handprints all over his body and the overwhelming scent of her arousal that was heavy in the air, and he wasn’t altogether sure just how long he was going to last.

And then there was her.

Roisin had let all of her guards down, allowing him to see her fully and completely as she truly was. Her wings had unfurled behind her, and were glowing with a fiery light. Her entire body was glowing, as though she contained the summer sun and it was trying to break free. 

As she tossed her head back, Paul swore he saw licks of flames in her wavy tresses. He reached out, tightly gripping her waist, helping her to move. She bucked against him and his head fell back against the bed, his heart pounding. When he looked back at her, he could see flames dancing in her eyes. Speechless, he watched as they slowly spread through her wings, until they too appeared on fire. 

Lifting up, he wrapped his arm around her, taking her mouth in his in a frantic kiss as he thrusted into her, the pace now becoming slightly erratic the closer they both got to their climaxes. The room had become almost unbearably hot, sweat coating both of them as they moved against each other, chasing their highs. 

He brought his hand around, reaching down between them and began to massage her clit again. Roisin broke away from him, gasping for air as her body began to jerk against him. 

“Come with me, Ro,” he urged, already feeling himself getting even closer. He wasn’t going to make it much longer.

She only nodded as she smiled, her hands gliding down his shoulders and then gripping his biceps, causing a pleasurably painful heat. 

He heard her breath hitch, the flames spreading until her hair was now on fire and starting to coat the rest of her body. He could feel them lick his own skin, but surprisingly they didn’t burn, instead starting to spread to him. 

His own breathing became labored as he reached the edge. He felt Roisin tighten around him and knew she was there as well. He gave one, powerful thrust and just as the flames had completely consumed them both, he felt an explosion of pleasure that threw him back on the bed as blinding white filled his vision. He heard Roisin cry out, felt her freeze a moment before she too collapsed on top of him.

Neither of them moved. He could feel her heart pounding against his chest as he wrapped his arms around her. When he could finally see normal, he looked down, finding the flames gone and the top of Roisin’s head as her red waves spilled over his chest, her wings spread out across her back and the bed. He reached out, giving into the desire to finally touch them, gently gliding his fingers over it. Roisin shivered slightly as his fingers traced up the hard ridge of a vein. It was like nothing he had ever felt before. She then raised up slightly, kissing his chest before looking up and meeting his eyes.

“Is it… is it always like that?” he managed to ask, still trying to catch his breath. She shook her head.

“It’s never been like that before,” she murmured. “Must be another imprint thing…”

“I could get used to that,” he said softly, running his fingers through her hair. Roisin’s smile grew as she leaned forward and pressed a kiss against his lips.

“Same here,” she replied. 

Roisin then slid off him, curling up to his side and tossing a leg over him as he pulled her closer. He knew they should clean up, but at the moment, he felt like all the muscles in his body had turned to mush. And he was growing a bit groggy. Right… they had both just been in a fight. Maybe just a quick nap and then they could take a shower together.

As his eyes were sliding closed, he felt himself twitch in anticipation at the thought. And then a few more images of them in the shower quickly followed. Which only made him harder. Holy shit, how was that possible?

“Wow, you wolves have good recovery time,” Roisin said softly, obviously feeling the same thing.

“Not yet,” he murmured with a chuckle as he kissed her head. “But soon…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I might have taken a bit of inspiration from the love scene in “Carnival Row” for this chapter. But I had it stuck in my head that things would happen to deepen the imprint between Paul and Roisin through finally sleeping together. And well, I did set it up from the beginning of their imprint that they would have a (slightly literal) explosive love life. 
> 
> Anyway, hope you enjoy! There is one more racy bonus chapter that is coming later on. ^_^


	27. Hide the Sun

Paul wasn't completely sure what time it was - just that the sun had gone down. And that Roisin was still in his arms. She moved slightly, making a soft noise in her sleep. He still felt a bit tired, but at the same time, it was almost as though he never had more energy in his life.

A buzzing coursed through his body and he could feel a tingling in all his nerves. More than that, he swore he could feel Roisin. Not as in physically - though in their current position and state of undress, he certainly could feel a lot of her - but rather, he could tell that she was happy. Content. At least for now.

Something had happened when they made love that first time. Something that had changed both of them. He had witnessed Roisin's change with his own eyes. Flames had erupted and spread across her whole body until they had consumed his as well. Something she swore had never happened before. But then afterwards, it was almost as though the imprint - which he had always felt - was stronger.

It was strange, but he found he liked it. And he wasn't exactly sure how he could describe it to the others. Or if he even wanted to try.

Looking down at her, he could still see her skin glowing slightly, could feel warmth almost as strong as his own radiating from her. He really had met his match.

Finally, Roisin yawned and blinked her eyes open. Immediately they had found his as a slow smile spread across her face.

"What time is it?" she asked softly. Paul finally looked over at her nightstand and sighed.

"It's about 7 pm," he said, looking back at her, finding a small smirk there.

"We've been asleep for two hours," she replied. "That last round must have done us in."

Paul chuckled, already starting to feel a simmering of desire as he recalled the round in question. Though honestly, the last thing either of them needed to do right now was have another go.

"We probably need to get up," he said reluctantly, glancing towards the door.

"What if I don't want to?" Roisin said, burying her face into the crook of his neck. "In here I can pretend that nothing's wrong."

"I know. But we can't ignore it forever," he replied. As much as he wished they could stay here as well, he knew that he needed to talk with the packs. They would want to know what happened with Cathal.

And they needed to come up with a new plan to get Tara back from the Shadow Court.

Sighing heavily, Roisin rolled away from him and got out of bed. He almost reached for her - not wanting to be away from her, but stopped himself. Instead, he got out on his side of the bed and walked over to his bag, pulling out some clothes and then sliding them on. When he turned around, Roisin was already dressed in yoga pants and a tank top, her hair pulled up into a bun on her head.

She smiled as she walked over and took his hand, kissing his cheek. As they stepped out of the room, Paul swore he felt a spike of worry, though he wasn't sure why. Yea, he was a bit concerned, but it wasn't the same. Glancing down at Roisin, he realized it must have been her again.

And yet again, he wondered just how different their imprint was going to be.

They continued walking towards the kitchen where they could hear voices. Stepping in, Jacob, Sam, Jared, Sean, Cara and Brendan were there around the island, a few plates of food put out. They all paused and looked over at the two.

"Guess you guys kissed and made up," Jared said, starting to grin. Sam smacked him in the arm, frowning at him. "What? You said they were yelling earlier."

For a moment, Paul felt his cheeks heat up. Apparently, they had really gotten caught up in everything. When had Jacob, Sam and Jared even gotten there? He glanced down at Roisin, finding her blushing furiously, but then she shook her head, her expression all business.

"We need to figure out what to do with Cathal," she said. Paul noticed that she was looking at Sean, who wore a stern expression, his dark eyes fixed on her as well. "That is if we can do that without yelling at each other."

"Why don't you start with a rundown of exactly what happened," Sean said with a sigh. Roisin nodded and walked over, leaning on the island as she went step-by-step through the entire exchange.

She was much calmer now, Paul noted, her tone even and her expression neutral. Though he could still feel her worry and frustration. He glanced over at Sean a few times, noticing that he too seemed pretty calm as well, though he knew he had heard them both shouting at each other as soon as Roisin had brought him here.

Once she was finished, Paul took in the looks around him. The wolves looked as though they were out of their element - which they probably were. Brendan was contemplative while Cara was looking worriedly at Sean.

The Shadow fae was staring at the island, his brow furrowed.

"It's obvious what we must do," Brendan said, getting everyone's attention. "We should go to Shadow Court."

Paul felt a twinge of fear run through him as he glanced at Sean and Roisin. He was fairly sure if either of them went to the court, especially to see Cathal, they wouldn't come back out.

"Okay, so who's going to go?" Cara asked, narrowing her eyes slightly at Brendan. "Have you even been listening? Sean and Roisin obviously can't. Sean will be killed on-sight and Cathal'll lock up Ro so fast, you won't have time to blink."

"It doesn't necessarily have to be them," Brendan said, grumbling slightly.

"I don't think he's going to want anything less than either of us," Roisin said, a glum note in her voice. "I mean, this is pretty much what we've been talking about this entire time. I really thought I could get out of it with that fight…"

"Is there any way we could sneak in?" Jacob asked. "I know going to him directly to negotiate is out of the question, but could there be a way to get into his kingdom and steal Tara back without being noticed?"

Roisin and Sean looked at each other, their eyebrows rising slightly. It was obvious neither of them had thought about it and truthfully, Paul hadn't either, wanting nothing more than for Roisin to stay as far from the Shadow Court as possible.

"You still remember ways in and out?" Roisin asked, glancing at Cara before looking at Sean again.

"Yea, but it's been a long time. Things change," Sean replied.

"I know ways in and out," Cara said. "I go back a lot. And I have contacts inside that would help us… There's actually a decent amount of fae left who would support Sean if he decided to go back."

"Is there anyway that we could go with you?" Paul asked, not wanting to be left behind. As far as he was concerned, where Roisin went, he did as well.

"Yea, but one of us has to lead you in," Cara said. "And honestly, we shouldn't take a huge group anyway. The fewer there are, the less likely we'll be found."

"Sean should stay here," Roisin said immediately. Sean frowned at her.

"Pretty sure you're going to need me, Ro," he said.

"No. We can't both go - in case something goes wrong. And he's not going to hurt me. Or, well, at least he's not going to kill me. _I_ might have a chance at getting out again. But you - he won't hesitate," she said. "He _will_ kill you."

Sean stood silently and Paul could tell that he was struggling with the decision. He wanted to go and look out for Roisin. Hell, he probably wanted to go so he would have the opportunity to take out his brother for the stunt he pulled earlier today. But at the same time, Sean knew as well as all of them that Roisin was right. It was too dangerous for him to go to Shadow Court.

"Fine," Sean finally said.

"Okay, so me, Ro and Paul," Cara said.

"Maybe I should go as well," Sam said. "I am my pack's alpha. You could need more strength on your side."

Cara and Roisin looked at each other and nodded.

"Suppose it couldn't hurt," Cara said. "Though would be nice to have Mae… manipulation could come in handy." She looked at Roisin, who was thinking it over.

"Yea… that would be good. I'll go get her," she said before walking out of the room.

"Okay, so how exactly do we get to the Shadow Court?" Paul asked. Cara started smiling as a wicked glint entered her eyes.

"Well…"

****

Roisin trotted up the stairs and came to a stop in the hallway, frowning slightly when she didn't hear any music or noise coming from Mae's room. She assumed that she was here since Sean and Cara were - the three obviously finished with their COSTCO trip. But it was strange for her to be so quiet.

Roisin walked up to the door and knocked.

"Mae?" she called out. When there was no answer, a wave of worry came over her.

She pushed open the door and walked into Mae's bright room, though all the lights were out. Frowning, she flipped on the light, wondering where she had gone. In fact, now that she thought about it, Mae had been running off a lot lately, though Roisin had assumed she was somewhere in the house.

But what if she hadn't been?

Roisin quickly scanned the room, finally seeing a note with her name on it sitting on Mae's mostly unused desk. Immediately she was there, picking it up and opening it. Her heart stopped as she took in the short message.

_I know that you feel you can't go to Shadow Court. So I'm going to try and talk to Cathal. Maybe I have something he wants… I'll be fine._

_Love, Mae_

In an instant, Roisin was back in the kitchen, the wolves all jumping slightly as she put the note on the island.

"She went to see Cathal," she said grimly.

"What? Why would she do that?" Sean asked, grabbing the note and looking over it.

"She knew I wouldn't have another chance to negotiate with Cathal. Or well, that I don't have much to barter with anymore. So she went to try and talk to him," Roisin said, her frustration growing.

She knew that Mae did it out of good intentions, but did she really have to do something so stupid? Now Cathal would have two things that Roisin would have to bargain for. Or well, maybe Cathal would let Tara go in exchange for Mae. Then it would still be one. But even then, they were still in the same conundrum.

"Shit. Now we have to get two of them out," Cara said, pounding the island in her anger and cracking the marble. Jared moved back slightly from the island. "One, yea. We could do that feasibly. But two? Fuck!"

Roisin looked up, meeting Sean's eyes. She knew immediately what he wanted to do.

"No. I won't let you do it," she said immediately.

"We've known all along there are only two things he wants, Ro. Me dead or you in the Shadow Court. And I would never live with myself if he got you," he said solemnly.

Tears immediately sprang into Roisin's eyes as she shook her head. She couldn't let him do this. Give himself up. There was no way. She couldn't live without him. He had gone out of his way to keep her safe over the years. Stood by her. Comforted her. Helped her to heal.

"No. Please don't do this," she whispered. Sean smiled sadly as he walked over to her, placing his hands gently on her face.

"I have to, Ro. There's no other choice. And you're too important to give to him," he said softly. "I've been running from him - from my past - for the last 500 years. It's probably time I faced it."

"He'll kill you," she replied, tears now falling down her cheeks. "Just… maybe… maybe we could get enough fae. Launch an attack. We could take back the court, like you've always said."

"What? And then you'll finally agree to be my queen? It's probably not going to work like that, Ro. You were right to stop me in the past," he said. He then kissed her forehead and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close. "I have to do this."

"No," she whimpered. She then shoved him away. "No! I can't let you do this!"

Suddenly, the kitchen felt too warm. Too suffocating. She needed to be outside. So she shook her head again and then turned and walked towards the verandah. The doors flew open and then slammed shut behind her as she raced to the far edge of the yard and sat down on the grass.

As she dropped her face into her hands to sob, she really hoped no one followed her this time.

****

"I should-"

"No. Let her alone for a bit," Sean said, placing a hand on Paul's chest to stop him. The two met eyes and Paul could tell he was being very serious. "Trust me on this. She needs some time and if you go out there right now, she might lash out and you will get hurt."

Paul looked towards the windows, barely seeing Roisin in the darkness, everything in his body telling him to go to her. He could feel her anguish and despair. But also her frustration and anger. The kitchen had gotten hotter in the moments before she stormed out. Maybe Sean was right about this.

"So that's it? You're just going to give yourself up?" Jacob asked. Paul looked over, noticing that he looked genuinely distraught. Which was something completely new. When had Jacob gotten on board with the fae?

"I don't see any way around it," Sean said with a sigh. "But… I'm prepared to die."

The kitchen was heavy with silence at that statement. Paul could see his shadows were much closer to him now, as though they were trying to comfort him.

"But how do we know Cathal will give Tara and Mae back?" Sam asked. "He could kill you and still refuse to give them up."

"We make a deal," Sean said. "I'll… send word. Tell him that I'll give myself up, but only if he returns Mae and Tara unharmed and alive."

Paul looked back outside, wishing there was some way they could get them back without giving up Sean. He knew that he was important to Roisin. And even at times he didn't quite understand their closeness, he felt no jealousy towards the older fae. Which was strange, when he thought about it too much. Normally, he would be itching to fight him even if Roisin had told him that she her feelings for Sean were different than what she felt for him. Struggling with jealousy. But he found that for some reason, _he_ didn't want Sean to die. And not just because of Roisin's connection to him. Or maybe it was. He wasn't sure.

It was then that Paul started to get an idea. He knew that deals with fae were binding. But it seemed that because they couldn't lie, they were also carefully worded.

"What if we got Cathal to do the exchange here," Paul found himself saying, looking back at Sean.

"Does it matter? If I agree to go with him, I have to go with him," he said.

"Yea, but… what if you said that you would give yourself up in exchange for them… and we were waiting in the background? The deal would say nothing about anyone else. We could jump in and take him out before you go with him," Paul said. "Create a loophole for a rescue mission."

"Cathal's too smart. We want to do it here, he'll know something is going on. He'll expect an ambush," Cara said. "And he knows about you."

"Yea, me. But not the packs. Not the other solitary fae. And not the vampires," Paul pushed, thinking there had to be some way for this to work. "Ro was holding her own for a bit in that fight. She's strong. If we were waiting and ready, we could fight him and get all of you back."

"Still… he won't come alone. He'll come prepared for a fight," Cara said, though she sounded as though she was starting to come around.

"My pack has 10 and we can fight," Sam said. He looked to Jacob.

"We've got four, but I could get the Cullens. That would be eight vampires," Jacob said without hesitation. "So, 14 wolves, eight vampires, and how many fae?"

They all looked to Cara and Brendan.

"As we said, we'll fight with you," Brendan said. "And others… if they knew who Roisin truly was, they would fight as well. For her. We've long heard the rumors and many are ready to aid her. There are at least eight more that I know would come. Probably more if we spread the word."

They all looked to Sean, waiting to see what he would say. To Paul, it sounded like a lot. Enough. But he had no idea how big the Shadow Court was. Or what they were all capable of. Sean was silent a long time. Long enough that Paul worried he wouldn't agree.

"That's if we can get Roisin to agree to let others know who she is. And his court is powerful. But Cathal is also arrogant. There's a good chance he won't bring a lot, thinking it would be enough. He doesn't know about the packs or the vampires that we know of. There is a chance - a slight chance, mind you - that he might underestimate us. Even if he does know more than we think he does."

"Sounds like decent odds to me," Jared said, smiling. But Sean was still frowning. He looked at Cara.

"What do you think? You're more connected with them than I am," he said. Cara glanced around the group and then looked back at Sean.

"It'll be a tough fight… but I think we could do it," she said. "And it's been a long time since either of us have had a really good fight."

He glanced around the group again and Paul found himself holding his breath. He knew that they couldn't do anything unless he agreed to it. Finally he took a deep breath and started walking out of the kitchen.

"I'll start writing and it's probably better that I don't know what you're planning. Someone needs to convince Ro," he said as he walked out.

Paul felt good about this plan. It could work. It had to work. It was then that he remembered the other part to making it work. They needed to convince Roisin to let others know who she was - for real. But surely that wouldn't be too hard. The three fae from the other night knew who she was somehow. And they were already working on a plan to get around the prophecy. Okay, well, not yet. But they would find something. They had to.

He took a deep breath and turned to walk out. It was then that he noticed Jacob was gone. Now already halfway across the yard to her. Wait? What the hell was he doing?

****

"Leave me alone," Roisin said dully, sensing someone was walking up behind her.

"Thought you might want to know the plan we just came up with to save everyone."

She started slightly, turning to watch Jacob as he sat next to her, her eyes wide. What the hell was he doing here? She was pretty sure it would be Sean or Paul, though she didn't think she could handle talking to either of them right now.

Jacob looked out over the clearing behind the house and then back at Roisin. She was surprised to see no antagonism in his face.

"So, we've come up with something. Yea, Sean's going to offer himself up. But we're doing the exchange here. And we're going to fight and get Mae and Tara back. And make sure that shadow dude doesn't kill Sean in the process," Jacob said.

Roisin frowned at him. That sounded like a horrible plan. They didn't have enough. And Cathal would know it was an ambush. He would come prepared. It was a good way to get everyone killed.

"The packs will fight, so 14 wolves. I'm going to get the Cullens, so that's eight vampires. And the other fae dude - he said he could get more of them. Maybe eight. But only if they knew they were fighting for you. And then he said he might be able to get more," he said matter-of-factly. "Otherwise, we'll still have you, Cara, Sean and those three. But Paul seems to think you're a strong fighter, so I think the odds aren't that bad."

Roisin's mouth dropped open. What? Okay, with those numbers, yea, this was possible. But how had they come up with it so quickly? And then she realized the other part of that. She looked away from him, realizing she was going to have to let the fae in this world know who she was. Where she was.

Could she do that?

"I… I don't know if I can let the others know about me," she said.

"Why not?" Jacob asked. She could hear the impatience in his voice, but he was trying to temper it. "I mean, yea, okay. So your parents and the Winter whatever are looking for you, but-"

"My brother found me," she said, still not looking at him. "We have a month to figure out a way around the prophecy or run. We were planning to run once we got Tara back."

"Okay, so even less of a reason to keep the secret if you're going on the move again in my opinion," Jacob muttered. Roisin looked over at him, her anger flashing.

"You don't know what Rian is like. He won't kill me - I'm too important - but there are so many other things he could do to me that are worse," she said. "He's already done things."

She stopped herself, unwilling to tell him more than that. She still couldn't say it outloud. Jacob looked back at her, his expression starting to soften. But then it grew angry again.

"He hurt you," he stated. Roisin nodded once. "And he'll do it again."

" _And_ the stupid prophecy. That's why I couldn't let anyone know who I truly was for the longest time. Everyone who is fae, they know about it. There's no telling what the wrong people would do if they got their hands on me. Already Winter and Shadow are willing to go through great lengths to get me. My family is willing to help because they're deluded enough to think it'll finally end all the fae wars. But at what cost? I don't think for a second that marrying me off to the highest bidder will stop all the fighting."

She looked away from him.

"You got into a fight with this guy on the football field during school. Doesn't sound like you're trying to hide," he said.

"You barely know me," Roisin hissed, looking back at him.

"You're right. I don't. But you know what I have seen? You willingly put yourself on the line to get your friend back. To protect your other friend. Sounds pretty brave to me," he said. "And those other fae - they seem to believe in you. They want to fight with you. Tells me that you're a lot more than brave."

Roisin just stared at him, not sure how to respond to that.

"And, even though Paul isn't in my pack, you are his imprint and I respect him - though don't tell him I said that. We'll stand with you," Jacob said. "We'll fight with you."

Roisin stared at him, not quite believing this was happening.

"You would fight with me?" she asked. "For two fae and a human?"

"Red, I think we both know there's a lot more at stake here than just them, but yea, I would do it even for just them," he said.

"Why?" she asked.

"Because you're willing to do whatever you can to protect them. And well… it's more than that," he said slightly reluctantly. "So, okay, you're not bad." Roisin snorted. "Look, I know I get a bit zealous…"

"Understatement," Roisin replied. Jacob gave her a sharp look.

"I just want to protect this place. And you seem to want to protect it as much as I do. The people here. That is something I can understand. If taking down this Shadow King and getting your friends back helps, I'm in," he said. "Besides, from where I stand, it looks like you need the help."

"I still can't seem to believe you want to help me. I thought you hated me," she blurted out. Jacob rolled his eyes.

"I never hated you. I just thought you might be hurting people here," he said. "Certainly don't hate you now. Kind of impressed, to be honest."

Well that shocked Roisin. But she decided she wasn't going to waste the moment. She turned to him and held her hand out.

"Okay. So truce?" she asked. Jacob started to reach out and then stopped, a worried look coming over his face.

"What am I agreeing to?" he asked. Roisin couldn't help but chuckle.

"You learn quick. Though I wasn't trying to pull a fast one on you. Just… we work together on this. And then after that… all I want is your friendship. No strings attached," she said. Jacob continued to stare at her. Roisin huffed. "I won't ask for favors unless absolutely necessary and you can opt out."

He considered this a moment and then nodded before taking her hand and shaking.

"Deal," he said. "Though I will say that this is a two-way street. Same thing on my side."

"Deal," Roisin replied. Jacob seemed to finally relax. She then pushed up from the ground. "Right… so I think we have a rescue to plan…"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Even though these chapters are a lot longer than I typically write, I still feel like I'm skipping through things quickly. Or maybe it's just me… Anyway, I'm now down to three chapters left to write (one of those being a short bonus chapter for AO3), and I nearly can't believe it. Just finished writing the big climatic chapter, but it's going to need some editing, I can tell.
> 
> But, as promised, Jacob is less of an ass! And really, I thought the only way he could bond with Roisin was their mutual desire to protect those they love. Obviously, they both get a bit zealous in that (though I stand by Roisin's decision to fight Cathal on her own – really, it was the best way).
> 
> Thanks everyone for reading and following! Really appreciate the love! And seriously, I'm so motivated to work on my original work "The Witch of Marshallville" because of this. I'm planning to spend time focusing on that once I finish this up, so unfortunately no new fanfiction. But you can still follow that story. ^_^


	28. Sunrise

Paul couldn't fall asleep. Even though he knew he should be beyond tired right now after the day they had and how late they stayed up, he couldn't seem to get his brain to shut down for the night, which had him switching positions for probably the 50th time. He stopped, seeing Roisin on her side, watching him with a small smile.

"Can't sleep either?" she asked.

"Sorry. I'm keeping you up," he replied, feeling a bit guilty. Roisin just chuckled, reaching out to run her fingers through his hair, massaging his scalp. Finally, Paul felt himself begin to calm down.

"Feeling better?" she asked. He nodded.

"Do you feel it too?" he asked, suddenly realizing he hadn't really had a chance to ask her. Roisin furrowed her brow. "After we… it's like… I feel you. I knew you were frustrated and worried when we were talking earlier even though your face was calm. And right now… You're still anxious."

Roisin didn't reply at first, but a look of understanding came over her features.

"So that's what I'm feeling right now. You," she said. "I guess I didn't notice it earlier with… everything. But yea, I'm still pretty worried about this plan, but behind that there's a bit of calm. From you, I think. Is that a normal imprint thing?"

"Not really. I mean, we've always been able to sense when they're in danger or something. But I don't think anyone else has shared emotions like this," he said. "The only person I know who can do that is a le-vampire."

Roisin laughed softly.

"Just another factor that makes us weird," she said lightly. Paul nodded.

"So are you going to finally tell me what the hell Jacob said to get you on board with the plan?" Paul asked. Roisin smiled and rolled onto her back, looking up at the ceiling.

"We made a truce," she said. "And well… he said some things that made me think that maybe this plan wasn't completely stupid." Paul rolled his eyes as he chuckled. She looked over at him again. "He called me brave, too."

"Because you are brave," Paul said with a snort. "You went up against Cathal."

"Partly because I was pissed off and itching for a fight," Roisin replied ruefully. "Which is actually kind of stupid and not very brave."

"But you also knew it was the best way to get Tara back without having to hand yourself or Sean over outright," Paul countered.

"If I won," she added.

"Which we both know you would have if I hadn't interrupted," Paul continued.

"Maybe we should learn how to coordinate our fighting styles," Roisin suggested. Paul couldn't help but smile at that thought.

The two of them fighting together. Kicking ass and taking names. He liked that idea.

She then rolled over towards him and Paul automatically reached out for her.

"You really think this will work? That everyone will come?" she asked, her voice dropping to a whisper. "That we'll get them all back and he won't kill Sean? That no one will die?"

"Honestly, I don't know. But I certainly hope that it will," he replied, finding it was better to match her honesty even if he had a choice to lie and make her feel better. "And I know I'm going to fight as hard as I can." Roisin nodded and looked deep into his eyes.

"We should really be getting some sleep. We don't know when Cathal is going to show up," she said.

"Yea, wish I could get that message to my brain," Paul said wryly. Roisin chuckled and then pressed a lingering kiss to his lips.

"You know… I have this really fun way to tire ourselves out," she said smoothly in a way that had Paul immediately aroused. "Guaranteed to make you pass out in exhaustion." A sly smile appeared as he quickly rolled over on top of her.

"I think I know what you're talking about," he said, just as seductively before he bent down and began kissing her neck.

"Goddess…"

****

Roisin nearly jumped when she walked into the kitchen the next morning to start the coffee and found Sean standing in front of the windows, looking out over the yard. Though he was still, she could see the tension in his back and his shadows once again caressing him in such a way it looked as though they were attempting to comfort him.

Glancing around, she could tell everyone else was still asleep or not there since the house was so quiet, so she walked over to him. With all that was going on last night, she hadn't had the chance to talk to him about all of this. And well, he had spent pretty much the whole time in his room. Cara had gone in after some time and then left to deliver the message to Cathal.

"Cara back yet?" she asked as she reached his side and looked over at him.

"She got back early this morning," he replied. He lifted his hand, holding a piece of paper. "Found this taped to the back door when I woke up."

Roisin took it, opening it up.

_Deal. Today. Sunset._

She took a deep breath. At least they had a bit more time to prepare. She still hadn't heard from Jacob about the Cullens or Brendan about the other fae. He, Caoimhe and Niamh had set out last night as well and she wasn't sure if they had gotten back yet.

"What did you say to him?" she asked, looking back up at him.

"Me for Mae and Tara - alive. We do the exchange here. I won't fight him," Sean said. He then looked over at her finally. "So, really counting on you to jump in there for me."

"I've always got your back," she said. He nodded and looked back at the yard.

"I know," he said simply. "But be careful."

"If you're about to start lecturing me-"

Sean turned to her suddenly, cutting her off as she took in the deep worry and fear in his eyes. But she knew it wasn't fear for himself or what Cathal would do to him. It was fear that Cathal could somehow hurt Roisin or steal her away to the Shadow Court. Roisin gulped, feeling the heaviness in the air.

"We're going to win this," she said softly. "We're going to beat Cathal and make sure he doesn't hurt you or anyone. And then we're going to run off and get as far away from him and my family and Winter as we possibly can."

Sean stared at her a moment before he nodded and turned back to the window, the heaviness dissipating slightly.

"Thinking maybe Mae wasn't halfway wrong about a deserted island," Sean said. "Not really deserted, but… got a place in mind where we can lay low for a few months until we can work out something more permanent. Or well, more solid."

"Sounds good. Sure Paul will like that," Roisin said, now imagining spending her days laying out on a beach with him. Swimming. Snorkeling. It was better to get lost in the daydream than to worry about what was going to happen that night.

"It'll be a good chance to teach him everything as well," Sean said with a sigh. "If he's with us, he's going to need to know everything about us."

"He's handled everything really well so far," Roisin replied. "I'm sure we won't have any problems." Sean smirked slightly.

"Yea, but he's also never had to go through a summer solstice with you," he commented.

"I… oh shit," she replied, glancing off towards her bedroom. "Yea, we should warn him about that… and take precautions. It… could get out of hand..." Sean chuckled.

Paul knew that it was their most sacred day in the Summer Court, but she hadn't exactly told him what went down. In the court, it was a week of debauchery, shenanigans and well, a whole lot of pleasure. And for the entire week, every Summer fae - whether in the Fae world or here - felt it. Pretty strongly. Other fae took part even if they weren't Summer, mostly because of all the stories. And well, they were all affected by the solstices in some way, it was just stronger in Summer fae during the summer solstice.

"Definitely should give him some warning before a ton of fae show up and start stripping," he replied with a smirk. "Or start trying to seduce him.

"Definitely," she said with a sigh. "But this imprint thing - it's definitely a monogamous thing… I'm honestly surprised how well I'm taking to it, considering..."

Sean raised an eyebrow at her, seeming curious.

"You mean if I offered to do that thing you like, you would turn me down?" he asked, a half-smile on his face. Roisin thought about it half a second and then nodded.

Even though Sean was talented in his own right, she honestly didn't want to mess around with him anymore. Granted, it wasn't like there had been romantic feelings there the times they had hooked up over the century. It was just fulfilling needs.

"And well, he gets jealous. You saw how he was with Cathal," she said.

"He's not going to like hearing about past solstices," Sean then said.

Roisin rolled her eyes and turned, walking back into the main part of the kitchen to start up the coffee pot.

"I'll explain everything. He'll get it," she said. "We can't help it… Especially on the solstice."

"What about all the other times when it wasn't the solstice? You're sure he's going to understand that?" Sean asked. "That he'll be okay with that side of you?"

"I told you, things have changed. I can't even imagine being with anyone else. I don't want to. Romantically or otherwise. Just him," she said, pulling the coffee grounds out of the cabinet. "This imprint thing is strong, I will tell you that."

There was silence a few seconds.

"Just wanted to make sure. And… so… what about Naked Wednesdays…" Sean started. Roisin frowned. What the hell was Sean talking about?

"What the hell is Naked Wednesday?"

Roisin jumped and spun around, seeing Paul standing in the kitchen in pajama pants without a shirt, a look on his face that was somewhere between worried and confused. She then glared at Sean, who was now laughing and had probably known all along that Paul was about to walk into the kitchen.

Well then, looked like the impending battle hadn't dampened his sense of humor. Or his desire to screw around with people.

"Oh my goddess. Sean is messing with you. We never had a thing called Naked Wednesday," Roisin said, turning back to the coffee pot. She heard Paul breathe a sigh of relief.

"I wouldn't mind starting it up, though," Sean said.

"Enough, Sean. It's too early in the morning for you to be fucking with him," Roisin said as she started dumping coffee grounds into the machine, glancing over her shoulder.

Paul looked a bit perturbed, though Sean was openly appreciating his body. She couldn't fault him. Paul had an amazing body and she now had personal experience that he knew exactly what to do with it. But he was all hers.

"Suppose you already took care of that this morning, didn't you?" Sean asked, glancing at her. Good grief. "At least consider it… Naked Wednesdays."

He then winked at Paul as he turned and left the kitchen.

"He was joking, right?" Paul asked. "I mean, I'm not… but we... Naked Wednesdays?"

Roisin couldn't help but chuckle at the perplexed expression on Paul's face. Okay, so Sean had a point. There was still a lot that she was going to have to explain to him. And well, she supposed Sean's humor was at times not for everyone, though she was grateful to see it this morning. It was better than him brooding, which he was sure to start doing as the day wore on.

"Yes, he's joking. There's no Naked Wednesday. And he's not going to seduce you," she said as she turned to finish up the coffee.

"Well, he can't. Even without the imprint, I'm not into guys," Paul said with a scoff. Roisin glanced at him as she made her way over to the fridge to get stuff to make breakfast. "Though… I wouldn't mind Naked Wednesdays as long as it was just you and me."

Roisin looked over at him, her eyebrows raised as she saw the sexy smirk on his face. That was a turnaround. She then noticed Cara walking towards the kitchen in her pajamas, rolling her eyes as she turned right back around and walked away.

"GET A ROOM!" she shouted as she walked away, holding her middle finger up in the air, causing Paul's cheeks to color slightly as he looked over to the archway.

"IF YOU WANT!" came Sean's addition. "I WOULDN'T MIND- OW! GODDAMMIT, CARA!"

"Pretty sure she punched him," Roisin said with a smile as she got back to work on breakfast. "And you'll get used to it… to them."

"What exactly are they?" Paul asked. Roisin laughed again.

"Yea, I don't think there's a word for it," she replied, starting on some scrambled eggs. "They're… Sean and Cara…"

"Right… so what was this about the summer solstice you guys were talking about?" Paul asked.

Roisin looked over, seeing that he was attempting to keep an innocent expression, but he had clearly overheard more than she thought. Roisin rolled her eyes as she turned back to the eggs. Damn wolf hearing.

"Oh my goddess… it's like you men have one thing on the brain this morning..."

****

What had started out as a strange, but funny morning quickly changed. After breakfast, the fae started showing up with fierce expressions, reading to fight. Then the packs. And finally Jacob showed up with the Cullens. Paul wasn't sure what he said to get them on board with this, but they were there and for once, he was truly grateful for the vampire family.

"So, what's the plan?" Emmett asked, smiling. Of course, he would be eager for a fight. "And anything else you can tell us about fighting them?"

Everyone looked at the group of about 13 fae that had gathered. Paul was impressed that they managed to get more than they had promised. All of them had been staring at Roisin as soon as they arrived, whispering to each other. It had her on edge. He could both feel it and see it.

She glanced at them and then turned to the vampires.

"These are Shadow fae. They will try to use your own fears against you," she said. She then looked to Sean, who had his arms crossed in front of him and a stern look on his face.

"They love fighting. Revel in blood and gore. They won't be merciful," he said. "And they're good at it. Fighting. Killing. But they are arrogant and they aren't indestructible. While they have speed and strength like vampires, they are flesh and blood. They'll bleed. And they can die."

The wolves and vampires seemed to accept this, all of them nodding.

"Sean and I will approach Cathal. Everyone else will wait in the woods until we give the sign," Roisin said. "We don't want to chance him finding out too soon and calling in reinforcements."

She then looked towards the windows, seeing the sun was getting lower in the sky. It was time for them to get out there. Paul felt a nervous energy settle in his bones. They all turned to the doors and stepped out. The fae, vampires and wolves started into the trees. Paul stopped and turned to Roisin, her own worry combining with his. There was a streak of determination in there as well.

He knew that she didn't want anyone on their side to die today. And by god, they were all going to do what they could to make sure that wouldn't happen.

Paul reached out for her, pulling her close and kissing her. He then stared down into her eyes.

"We can do this. _You_ can do this," he said softly, but firmly. Roisin just nodded in response. He then turned and started jogging into the woods, joining the rest of his pack.

They quickly undressed, shifted and started to fan out, their eyes fixed on the couple standing in the middle of the field, their eyes fixed on the far side.

God, he hoped they could do this.

****

Roisin took a deep breath, trying to keep her jumping nerves calm. She felt Sean reach out and take her hand. She looked over at him and swallowed.

"I'm not going to let him take you," she said solemnly. A brief smile flashed across his face.

"Usually I'm the one saying that," he replied.

"Yea, well, I mean it just as much as you do," she said. Sean stared at her a moment and then pulled her to him, kissing her forehead.

"I'm counting on you to seriously kick my brother's ass," he said. "I talked a big game, but I really don't want to die today."

"I know."

He then let go of her and the two looking around the trees, waiting. They had more time before Cathal was supposed to arrive, but she wanted to make sure that everyone was well hidden before the exchange. Even if the Shadow king knew there would be an ambush, she didn't want to chance him hurting anyone before he even got to them.

Finally, after what felt like forever, Roisin's dread began to grow.

"He's here," Sean said dully.

They both waited and watched as shadows glided out of the trees, slithering across the ground before they swirled together and Cathal appeared, an amused smile on his face.

"I was hoping you'd be here," he said to Roisin.

"Where's Tara and Mae?" she replied. Cathal sighed.

"You are far too serious, Summer princess," he said, sounding disappointed, as he lifted his hand and motioned to someone.

In an instant, another fae appeared, gripping an angry Mae by the arm with one hand, and propping up a bruised and disoriented Tara with the other arm. She was still in her wetsuit. At first, relief coursed through Roisin, but then it was quickly followed by worry when she saw the state her friend was in. The highschooler looked around until her eyes finally locked on Roisin.

"Ro?" she said, tears filling her eyes. "Oh my god, Ro!"

She tried to get out of the fae's arm, but nearly collapsed.

"We said unharmed," Roisin said, turning her eyes to Cathal, seething.

"And I told you that _I_ didn't do anything to hurt the little mortal," he replied. "But I couldn't attest to what was done before I found her…"

"Let's get this over with," Sean said. Cathal's eyes flicked over to him.

"So eager to die, are we?" he asked with a chuckle.

"No, just eager to be done with you," Sean retorted.

"Fine. Hand them over. And remember, you said you wouldn't fight," Cathal said, leveling a scowl at his older brother. Sean didn't reply, only started walking towards him.

"Cara!" Roisin shouted. In an instant, the Shadow fae appeared, taking Mae and Tara.

"Close your eyes," she ordered Tara. The human girl looked confused but did as she was told, then the three were gone, safely inside the house.

"Well, now that they're out of the way," Cathal said, a cruel smile spreading across his handsome face.

Roisin didn't even have time to say or do anything before she and Sean were suddenly surrounded by a ring of Shadow fae. Quickly, Sean ran to her side, trying to position himself in between her and the others, but it was difficult.

"What is this?!" Sean demanded, the ground shaking slightly under his feet.

"Please, like I was going to pass up the chance to get you both. Go ahead, call out your little warriors that you probably have hiding out around here," Cathal said, waving his hand in the air. "Let's get this over with. I've got dinner plans that I don't want to be late for."

Roisin looked at Sean and he nodded once. Turning back to back in the ring, she let out a loud, shrill whistle as she stared down the Shadow fae surrounding them. They had been right in that Cathal likely underestimated them - there were only about 20. But at the same time, these were trained fighters. And a large majority of their side had never fought a fae before.

But still, Roisin was liking the odds.

"Ah, it's your guard dog," Cathal said, watching as Paul stalked out of the trees. Roisin looked over at him. Cathal was laughing, though that quickly stopped when the rest of the packs began emerging from the trees, their hackles raised and bodies taunt, ready to strike. "Holy…"

He turned to look at Roisin, anger starting to creep into his eyes. She was sure he thought they were werewolves, which would probably help them out.

"You honestly thought we wouldn't be prepared? Sean may have promised not to fight you, but I made no such promise," Roisin replied.

In the next instant, the fae and vampires had joined the wolves, the group now forming a large, loose ring about the Shadow fae. Cathal scanned the group, a scowl on his face and calculating look in his eyes. While she hoped that he would get scared off, he was the Shadow king. He didn't scare that easily.

And it seemed his soldiers didn't either, the entire group tense as they waited to see who would attack first.

"Vampires, wolves and fae," Cathal said, looking back at Roisin. "I am impressed…"

A predatory smile spread across his face as he walked towards the ring, standing just outside of it. Roisin heard Paul growling loudly, though neither she nor Cathal looked in his direction.

"All of this for my traitorous brother, a foolish Summer fae and an insignificant mortal. I'm curious to see what you do when something bigger is on the line," he said.

Even though everything inside her was jumping to attack, Roisin waited and remained calm as she stared the Shadow king down, praying that he would cut his losses and just go.

"You're not going to make this easy for me, are you?" Cathal asked. Roisin shook her head. "Very well."

Three things happened all at once. Cathal snapped his fingers, disappeared, and then hell broke loose.

****

Paul charged at the ring of Shadow fae as soon as he saw them lunge towards Roisin and Sean but found himself being cut off. He roared and tried to sink his teeth in to toss the fae out his way, but it was suddenly at his side, landing a kick that had him flying through the air, much farther away than he wanted to be.

 _Paul! To your left!_ Jared shouted.

Paul turned his attention away from the others just in time to see another fae rushing at him. He spun around and prepared to lunge forward when Jared flew through the air, tackling the fae to the ground and taking a large chunk out of its shoulder, causing it to shriek in pain. Paul growled as he looked back over, seeing Roisin and Sean still surrounded by about five fae, the two of them fighting back to back.

Quickly, he began to fight his way over, every so often catching a glimpse of them. They moved in a way that almost looked choreographed, the two fae easily moving with each other, one ducking or dodging while the other punched or kicked. Sometimes giving the other a literal hand. Sean's shadows swirled around them, often pushing fae back or knocking them off their feet, while Roisin would punch one and then send another sprawling just by raising her hand at it.

Her hair flowed around her, flames licking at the ends and flaring up every so often, while Sean's face looked absolutely terrifying. As though he was a nightmare incarnate.

So far, it looked like their side was winning. But yet, Cathal hadn't shown up again. Just where was he?

Paul didn't have time to wonder about it too long, dodging another fae as he helped Jared take down another, the two easily falling into their usual routine. Finally he worked his way over to Sean and Roisin, managing to sink his teeth into a fae that had been just about to launch onto her.

For a moment, she looked at him with wide eyes, but then she grinned and nodded. The three of them began working together then - Sean paralyzing the fae and then Paul attacking. Or doing the same for Roisin. They easily and quickly fell into sync together in such a way that it actually surprised Paul. But then again with the imprint, it probably shouldn't have.

He only hoped this would all be over with soon.

****

"Ro, you do know your hair is on fire, right?" Sean called out. Roisin grunted as she ducked and then flew up in the air, landing a kick to the fae's chest that shot it across the field and into a tree trunk. "And your wings."

"Yea," she said, slightly breathless. "New thing."

Sean glared at one of the fae, causing it to shriek in agony as its eyes glazed over. He then jumped out of the way as Paul took care of the rest.

"Since when?" he asked.

"Uh… since Paul and I-" Roisin stopped speaking as she sent a wave of heat at two approaching fae, sending them flying back. Wait… were there more Shadow fae? She swore they hadn't been outnumbered before this all started and it felt like more just kept pouring out of the trees.

She then turned and blasted off two fae that had been trying to sneak up on Paul, then ducked down as he leaped over her to take out another.

"Since you what?"

"Slept together. First time. I kinda set both of us on fire. Literally," she said, not sure why they were having this conversation now. She was trying to save his ass from his homicidal brother.

Roisin looked around, not seeing Cathal anywhere. What the hell? Was he seriously about to let his pawns do all his dirty work?

"Get your fucking ass out here, Cathal! Unless you're scared!" she shouted, taunting him.

"For fuck's sake, Ro!"

Suddenly, Roisin was cut off from Sean, Paul and everyone as a wall of shadows appeared, twisting around her. She spun around, finding Cathal standing there with a smirk on his face and his hands in his pockets, his shadows creating an enclosure around them.

"Let me guess… rematch?" he asked, tilting his head to the side as he smiled at her. He then took in the flames in her hair and wings. "Like the new look…"

Roisin didn't reply as she narrowed her eyes, clenching her hands into fists at her sides. As Cathal continued to grin at her, she could feel her anger start to grow. This had started out as a fight to get her friends back, but now as she remembered how broken Tara had looked, it only increased her rage. One of Cathal's fae had taken Tara and hurt her. And he had exploited that and Mae's foolish decision to his advantage.

He was just one more fae who wanted to control her. Use her. And he wanted to hurt Sean. Kill him. She wasn't about to let him hurt anyone else that she loved.

Roisin started towards him, breathing heavily as she felt her power well up in her like hot lava, starting to pool in her hands. If he was nervous, Cathal hid it well, striking a casual pose as he waited for her to draw nearer. But just as she was about to strike out, some of the shadows peeled off, slamming into her chest and tossing her back. Quickly, she got back on her feet and charged for him again, this time managing to dodge the shadows while sending a blast of heat at him that had Cathal incensed. Rather than taunt her, he solely focused on the fight.

The two moved around each other in rapid fashion. A kick here. A punch there. Roisin gritted her teeth together, frustrated at how fast he was, how difficult it was to evade him in the small space. But she wasn't about to give up.

She had just begun to lunge for him again when she came to an abrupt stop, no longer in the circle of his shadows but rather in a large open field with Rian standing in front of her. His cold blue eyes were fixed on her, as a small smile appeared on his face.

Cold began to slither through her veins even though he didn't move towards her.

"I know what you want," Cathal's voice came from somewhere behind her. Suddenly, he was behind Rian, a long, ugly dagger in his hand, light glinting off its jagged edge.

Roisin couldn't look away, transfixed as Cathal slowly lifted the blade.

"I'd do it for you. Or we could do it together," Cathal continued.

With a quick jerk, the dagger was then back at his side as Rian's mouth dropped open and blood began to pour from his neck.

Relief flooded through Roisin as she watched him fall to his knees and then faceplant on the ground, blood staining the grass around him. It was then followed by a feeling of satisfaction. She looked back up, meeting Cathal's eyes.

"Join me… and we can kill him together," Cathal crooned. "No one could touch us. We'll start with Winter and one by one we can take over all the other courts." He continued slowly walking towards her, his voice growing more and more seductive. "You want to do this…"

"I…" Roisin started.

It would be easy to say yes. Then she could stop running. Without Rian alive, there would be no marriage. No more fear. He would never hurt anyone ever again. And Cathal was strong. Stronger than her. If she agreed, they could kill Rian together. They would be unstoppable. Her fire and his shadows.

She then stopped. No. She didn't want this. Well, yes, she wouldn't mind if Rian died, but she didn't want to make a deal with Cathal to kill him. Didn't want to be with him. She didn't want to take over all the fae courts. And the Shadow king always wanted something - she would give up too much.

Both Cathal and Rian needed to pay for what they had done, and someday they would. For trying to kill Sean. For hurting Tara. For hurting herself. But not like this.

Closing her eyes, Riosin took a deep breath and reached inside her, grabbing onto her power and embracing it. She needed to break out of Cathal's control of her.

When she opened her eyes, Cathal jumped back slightly, but Roisin didn't give him a chance to get away, lunging for him. She grabbed him by the neck, lifting him from the ground and then slamming him down into it. Cathal quickly jumped back to his feet, the shadow enclosure around them starting to flicker slightly. With a shout, they both launched at each other. Despite the fact she wasn't even sure how long she had been fighting, Roisin found herself strangely energized. She had gotten out of Cathal's enthrallment a second time now - the first being when he attempted to use her own fear against her and just now when he tried to use her darkest desire to tempt her.

It was rare that someone could break free of his entanglements like that.

And the longer they fought, the more frustrated Cathal appeared. He couldn't seem to get his hands on her, which only pushed Roisin faster and harder. Finally, they broke through the wall of Shadows as Cathal landed hard on his back with Roisin on top of him, her hand blazing like a branding iron on his neck as the Shadow king shouted in pain.

"You will never hurt anyone that I love again," she hissed, bending down so that he was looking directly into her eyes.

"Ro!"

She looked up, seeing that while she had been caught up with Cathal, the fight had ended outside. Sean ran up to her with a now transformed Paul just behind him. Sean came to a stop, breathing heavily as he looked down at them with wide eyes, covered in cuts and bruises, but looking otherwise fine.

Roisin looked down at Cathal and then back up at Sean. She got up and dragged Cathal with her, a large severe burn in the shape of her hand on his neck that would likely scar. Good.

She then shoved him down on his knees, roughly holding his arms behind him as she shoved her knee into his back and then met Sean's eyes. For some reason, he stared at her slightly in shock as she grinned at him.

"You want to do the honors or should I?" she asked him.

"What are you doing?" Paul asked, a slightly horrified look on his face. Roisin laughed.

"We're going to kill him, of course."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Getting closer to the end! And sorry if the pacing feels a bit off with this chapter. I knew the fight would happen at the end and didn't intend to have so much before it, but then… got to writing and couldn't stop. Then couldn't bring myself to cut too much stuff out (though I did end up cutting out A LOT). You know how it is… Hard to kill babies and all…
> 
> And I really wanted to show more of the others fighting with Shadow, but I wanted the main focus to be on Roisin, Sean and Paul fighting together and then Roisin facing off with Cathal. Once I did that, I realized I had a lot going on, and adding more in would make things a bit too convoluted, I think. Yea, best to keep it focused. And sorry to end on another cliffhanger, but the good news is that I'm making good progress and should be able to post the next chapter tomorrow. I'm about a third of the way into Chapter 31, then it's just one more chapter to write after that.
> 
> I kind of feel that the deeper I got into this story, the more chaotic it got (or maybe it's just me?) but, suppose it goes with the characters. The fae are pretty chaotic… And knowing me, there's always the chance I'll go back and do some editing/rewriting later on to try and streamline things a bit, but for now, I'm happy with how things are going.
> 
> Thanks everyone for reading and following! Let me know what you think!


	29. Hours Until Sunset

"Come on! Kill him or I'll do it," Roisin shouted.

To make her point, Cathal groaned in agony, obviously from her grip on him. He looked as though he was in serious pain, his normally smug look long gone as his dark eyes roved around frantically, almost as though he was looking for some sort of help.

The shadows that had cut them off from the rest of the group were long gone, now much lighter as they hovered around his body. He was weakened, that was easy to see. Paul wondered what had happened when they were stuck in the tornado of shadows together.

Paul wasn't sure what to do. He had never seen Roisin like this before. This unhinged. Was it a fae thing or a Roisin thing?

Her hair and wings were alight in flames and he could see them dancing around her hands. There was a fierceness in her eyes that he had never been before. Almost as though she was enjoying this.

He chanced a look over at Sean, the stoic fae now with a stern look on his face as he took in the scene. Paul could also sense a bit of confusion and worry in his dark eyes. Almost as though he wasn't sure what to do either. The temperature around them was about the same as a hot summer day, and climbing.

"Roisin, let him go," Sean finally said. Both Cathal and Roisin looked up at him in confusion.

"What?" she asked. "But isn't this what you want?"

"I want him to leave me alone. But not at this cost. At what it's doing to you," Sean said calmly.

Roisin stared at him a few moments and then something switched inside her. She looked down at Cathal and then let him go, backing away from him as she stared down at her hands in momentary shock. Cathal brushed himself off and slowly got to his feet, grimacing.

"You really were never meant for Shadow Court. All this mercy," Cathal said, disdain filling his voice.

Now that it was obvious that Roisin wasn't about to kill him, Cathal had transformed back into his usual arrogant self.

"I don't want the court. I only want to be left in peace," Sean said. He was then suddenly in front of Cathal, gripping his shirt as his shadows swirled around them. "But get this through your head. Leave us alone and we won't have any problems. Try something like this again, I won't hesitate to kill you." He glanced over at Roisin and then back at Cathal. "Or I'll let her do it."

Cathal swallowed and nodded quickly. Sean shoved him away and Cathal looked around the clearing. He snapped his fingers and then he and his guard disappeared into the trees, some of them carrying others, though Paul wasn't sure if they were just injured or dead. To be honest, he had been so desperate to get to Roisin in the fight, that he wasn't sure what the casualties were on either side.

As soon as the Shadow Court was gone, Paul rushed over and took Roisin in his arms, holding her tightly.

"Thank god you're okay," he said, kissing her head. "When I couldn't see you - I thought the worst."

"Yea, I'm fine," Roisin said, though she still sounded a bit dazed.

Paul stepped back and looked at Roisin. She had some scratches and bruises, but seemed more shaken than anything. For a moment, Paul was back in the moment when he saw Roisin cut off from everyone. He had tried to break through, as had Sean, but neither had any luck. And they couldn't see or hear anything that went on inside. He thought he would collapse in relief when the shadows broke down and he saw Roisin on top of Cathal.

And then he had seen the look in her eyes and he wasn't so sure.

"What was that?" he asked. She shook her head and shrugged.

"I'm… not sure. It was like something else just took over," she said. "He got into my head and then… something just snapped."

Paul looked over at Sean, who was studying her with a concerned look. He then turned.

"Come on, we should see to the others. Make sure no one was hurt too seriously," he said. Paul sighed as he and Ro started back towards the house.

Now that the fight was over, he took the time to scan his surroundings. There was blood here and there, but he wasn't sure who it belonged to. A few of the solitary fae were limping, injured. Helping each other back to the house. The wolves seemed okay - minor injuries from what he could tell, but nothing Carlisle couldn't fix up. At least whatever didn't heal itself. The Cullens were uninjured, but it wasn't as though they could actually get that hurt. Or at least, whatever injuries would heal instantly.

"So… that's over," Paul said, looking down at her. Roisin nodded, though her face was still tense.

"One disaster down, another to get through," she said dryly. Paul squeezed her hand, causing her to look at him.

"We'll get through whatever comes next, together," he vowed. Roisin nodded and looked away, though she didn't seem as convinced.

But then the same look of determination came over her face as she picked up her pace.

"Come on, I need to check on Tara…"

****

Roisin stood just inside the doorway to one of the guest rooms, watching as Brendan checked on Tara again. She had been given something to wear and seemed a bit more comfortable - at least she was no longer in pain. But Roisin could still see the cuts and bruises on her. The haunted look in her eyes.

They would need to come up with a story. As relieved as Roisin was to have Tara back, they couldn't just take her home right now. She had been thought lost at sea. Dead. How did they explain finding her alive weeks after she had supposedly drowned in a rip current?

"Ro," Tara said, her voice scratchy.

Roisin smiled as she pushed off the doorframe and walked over to the bed. Brendan stood and stopped for a moment at her side.

"She will heal physically. I cannot attest for what happened to her in Shadow Court, however," he said softly.

"Thank you," Roisin said. He bowed to her and then left the room, shutting the door behind him. "What do you remember?"

"We were surfing… and then something grabbed me. Pulled me under. I… I thought I was dying, but… just before I passed out, we were above the water," Tara said, a confused look on her face. "It was… things are a bit fuzzy, but… I remember being dragged onshore. And then through the trees… we were moving so fast… I got sick… then we were in this biker bar, which makes no sense." She stopped and looked up at Roisin. "I… we went into a closet, but it wasn't a closet… Next thing I know… I'm in some… cell."

Roisin took a deep breath, not wanting to ask what happened next, but needed to know.

"Did they… whoever took you… did they hurt you?" she asked softly. Tara looked away, a pained look on her face.

"It all just kind of blurs together. I can't remember much. I know that I was in and out of consciousness. But anytime I was awake, I wished I was knocked out… I, I don't know what they did to me, but I remember the pain… and fear. I was terrified," she said softly. She then looked up at Roisin. "What did they do to me? Where was I? How… how long have I been gone?"

Roisin walked over and sat on the bed next to her. Tears were pooling in Tara's eyes.

"It's like… I keep trying to remember details, but my mind is blocking it," she murmured. "But from what I do remember, I don't think I want to remember more…"

"It's probably a good thing," Roisin said gently, knowing that whatever they did to her, it was definitely a good thing if Tara couldn't remember the details. Tara then met her eyes.

"But… what's going on? Those people… they weren't real people. And then Mae was there. And you… what are you?" she whispered.

"I'm your friend," Roisin said. "And I'm going to make sure nothing like this happens to you again." Tara looked confused. Roisin then placed her hand on her forehead. "For now… sleep."

****

Everyone was still in the living room when Roisin came down, which she shouldn't have been surprised about. They still needed a plan for getting Tara back to her parents, and one that preferably didn't involve fae, wolves or vampires. Sighing, she walked over to Sean.

"How is she?" he asked.

"Confused. She doesn't know how long she's been away. All that she can remember are fear and pain," Roisin said. "We need to come up with something… What little she remembers, it can't be explained. She remembers the portals and being in a cell."

Sean nodded and looked around the group. He cleared his throat, getting everyone's attention and then gave Roisin the floor.

She turned to look at them, taking in the faces. She was happy to see that they hadn't lost anyone - that had been a huge possibility considering who they were fighting against. But for the most part, everyone was okay, even if the fae and wolves were still sporting some injuries. Injuries that would likely heal quickly. She was still a bit stunned that she had such a large group that had willingly come to fight with her - even more so that only a portion were fae.

The packs, she understood. Thanks to the imprint, they saw her as one of their own. But she still wasn't completely sure just why the Cullens had been so eager to help. Perhaps they, like Jacob, just wanted to help protect the area.

"She'll heal, physically. Her memory seems a bit spotty - whatever they did to her, she was in and out of consciousness. So she isn't sure of where she was exactly or how long she was gone," Roisin said. "She remembers a lot of fear and pain, though."

Roisin looked to the ground, the guilt welling up in her again. This was her fault. Tara was like this because of her. Because she had allowed so many fae into the area and then somehow Cathal had found out and gotten involved. Perhaps wherever they went next they should stay far from mortals. Roisin didn't want to chance anyone else getting hurt because of her.

"Did you tell her the truth?" Jacob asked, though his voice was gentle. Roisin looked up at him and then shook her head.

"I don't know how much more she can take before she breaks," she said, running her fingers through her hair.

She felt Paul grip her shoulder and she looked at him, seeing him offer her a comforting smile. It worked a bit, but her worry for Tara was too big to be pushed away by a smile. Even the calm that he usually brought to her wasn't helping.

"We need to find a way to get her home," Roisin said. "But I'm not sure how to do that. Her parents - and the police - think she's dead. Drowned. How do we explain that?"

"It might be better if one of us takes her in, rather than you or the Cullens," Sam said. "We have a deal with Charlie. He'll help us out. Won't ask too many questions. We can tell him that we found her farther up the coast."

Roisin thought it over and then nodded. It was probably for the best. They needed to get out of Forks, anyway. Being involved with this, it would just hold them up or make them more suspicious in Chief Swan's eyes. Though she hoped that whatever deal the wolves had with him now extended to her.

"Okay," Roisin agreed. "But we still need a story…" She looked over at Sean and then back at the others. "I'm not that great at altering memories, but I could attempt to take them away… Mae's better at that sort of thing, but I don't want to bother her right now…"

"I can do it," Sean said.

"Wait, so that's another thing you can do?" Jacob asked, astonished. Roisin shrugged.

"Not all of us, no. Like I said, I can to an extent. But some are better than others. Mae is good at manipulation, so she could use that to get Tara to forget or remember something else. Or at the very least to not tell anyone the truth," she said as she glanced at Sean. "Shadow is better at getting into people's heads, though. Messing around in there."

"Ah, right," Jacob replied.

"Okay, so… what's the story we're going with? You found her wandering in the woods near the coast?" Roisin asked, trying to stay on track as she looked at Jacob and Sam.

"I don't think we could get away with that. She's been missing for over two weeks," Sam said. Roisin frowned as she looked away.

She had been so caught up in finding and getting Tara back, that she hadn't really stopped to think about how to handle it once they got her.

"What if you completely take away her memories and we say that we found her in a hospital in another town farther away with amnesia?" Paul suggested. "It's better than trying to come with some other logical explanation for finding her in the woods. Or a cover story for Tara. People hit their heads and get amnesia all the time. And like Sam said, if we tell Charlie it's need-to-know, he won't ask too many answers. He can convince the family not to look into it more."

Roisin looked at Paul a few moments and then nodded. While still a bit shaky, it was better than nothing. And at the moment, she was a bit too frazzled to think of something better. And well, she was pretty sure in the long run, it would be better for Tara if she couldn't remember her time with Shadow Court.

"Okay, we'll do that. But we should let her rest and then we can take care of everything tomorrow," she said.

She looked around the room, yet again a bit overcome by everyone there. Most of these people - beings - barely knew her and had stood by her tonight regardless. She wasn't even sure where to begin thanking them.

"Thank you, everyone. For today," Roisin said, finding the words rather lame at best.

"That was one hell of a fight," a large vampire said, grinning. "Let us know if they decide to come back."

Roisin looked over at him, slightly surprised to see him still so giddy. Vampires must love to fight. Or at least this one. A blonde vampire next to him rolled her eyes. Roisin really needed to get around to learning their names - or well, they wouldn't be here long enough for it to matter, she supposed.

"Regardless, let us know if there is anything else we can do," Carlisle said. Roisin nodded and then they turned and left.

The remaining fae all bowed to Roisin. She stared at them, dumbstruck. Not this again. She wasn't trying to do anything but stay away from her brother and Rian. Get her friend back from Cathal. At least they had dealt with that problem.

"You don't have to do that," Roisin said.

"We still choose to follow you," Niamh said as she rose. "Seeing you this night only solidified our thoughts. You are stronger than the Shadow king. Perhaps the strongest of us all."

Roisin looked at Sean, who had a curious look on his face as he studied the room. He then glanced over at her, before looking at Paul, the curious look remaining.

Whatever it was he was thinking, Roisin didn't care. Her thoughts were spinning out of control at the moment. She still wasn't even sure what had happened when she was fighting Cathal. Other than she had nearly lost it, which as she remembered, was not a good thing usually. Not to mention, they still needed to get on the road if they wanted to avoid another run-in with her brother. She was pretty sure it wouldn't be as friendly as his last visit.

"I… I need some air," she said, spinning on her feet and rushing outside. She could hear Paul say something to Sean and knew one of them was about to follow her.

Sighing, she sat down in a chair and stared out into the night.

****

Paul sighed as he followed Roisin outside. Without a word, he sat down next to her and reached out, taking her hand. He immediately felt a bit of the tension leave her body, but there was still a lot there.

"I can't handle… that," she said, motioning towards the house, "right now."

"I know," Paul replied, glancing at her. "But they seem to want to follow you."

Roisin shook her head and he could feel her frustration. He began to caress the palm of her hand, doing whatever he could to help calm her down.

"I just… this is all a bit much," Roisin admitted, not looking at him. "I feel like everything is happening too fast. I mean, I meet you, imprint. Then Shadow takes Tara and I have to deal with Cathal. My brother shows up. These fae start showing up… I mean, thank the goddess we have Tara back, but… I feel like going on the run and staying hidden is going to be a lot harder now that other fae know about me…"

Paul reached over, guiding her to look at him. Roisin's eyes were wide with worry, tears threatening to fall down her cheeks, which were still sporting dirt and scratches from her fight with Cathal. Without a word, she stood up and walked over, curling up in his lap. Paul gently rubbed her back.

He knew that a lot of decisions needed to be made very quickly and that they would need to leave within a week - as soon as they possibly could - if they were going to stay ahead of Darraugh. Or, well, part of him wondered if they should run. She already seemed to have attracted a decent amount of fae to her side. Had the packs and perhaps the Cullens. Maybe making a stand was the best solution. However, Paul also knew now probably wasn't the best time to get into that. Roisin needed a moment to breathe.

"It's going to be okay, Ro," he said.

"But how do you even know that?" Roisin asked, her arms around his neck, though she didn't look at him.

"Because we'll be together," he replied. Roisin scoffed softly.

"Love doesn't conquer all," she said, a harsh edge to her voice.

"Maybe not, but I do know that we're better together. I mean, you saw the way we fought tonight," he said, unphased by her response. Roisin sat up and met his eyes. "I know that you can feel it too."

"But, are you really sure you want to do this? We're about to go on the run and you'll have to leave… everything. Your dad, your friends, your pack," she said softly, her brow furrowed. "Because of me."

Paul chuckled as he gently took her face in his hands.

"Thought we've been over this. Where you go, I go," he said. "We're imprints and we're in this together. Going on the run. Figuring a way around the prophecy. Or at least getting you out of your betrothal to Rian. And I promised I wouldn't let him get you… Granted after today, it's obvious you're strong. You took care of Cathal pretty easily on your own."

"Yea, and then nearly killed him," Roisin said, looking off.

"But you didn't. Honestly, I don't think it would have been _that_ bad a thing if you had now that I really think about it," Paul replied with a snort. While he had been a bit frightened at the time, in hindsight, it probably would have saved them a lot of grief later on. Roisin glanced at him and then back at the yard.

"It would have meant that Sean would have to take back the court," she said, her brow still furrowed. "Or well, I probably could have taken it… if I had done it… but I'm glad that Sean stopped me. I don't want Shadow Court. And I don't want to lose Sean to Shadow Court. He really doesn't want to go back..."

Paul was silent a moment, the full implications of what could have happened if Roisin had gone through with her threats earlier and killed Cathal. And he could sense there was more there that she wasn't saying.

"I mean, yea, if either of us had taken it, it _could_ have solved the problem with Rian - either I would be sole ruler or Sean's queen. But we still aren't completely sure if me marrying into another court or taking over another court is enough," she continued.

She shook her head again and sighed, now chewing on her bottom lip.

"Ro… you've never killed something before, have you," Paul said, realizing just why she was rambling. She sat up and looked over at him, her eyes wide. She then looked away, shaking her head.

"No, I haven't," she said. "And well, after today, I'm not sure how I feel about that, to be honest. There've been times when I thought I could. Especially today. I thought I was ready to kill Cathal. And then, I realized all the things that would do… It would have created more problems." She sighed. "Not that it matters. We're still stuck with the same issue. Darraugh will come for me. And I'm stuck engaged to Rian… who _will_ look for me too if he isn't already…"

Paul pulled her closer, not speaking for a moment as everything she said ran through his head. He didn't believe there was no way around this. And honestly, he felt like the answer to everything was within their grasp - and that running wouldn't solve anything.

The fae that had fought here today, they were ready to follow Riosin. Maybe it wasn't the mending of the Fae world, but rather bringing together solitary fae who had previously left other courts into a brand new one. It made sense to Paul. But at the same time, he wasn't sure if right now was the time to hash everything out. He didn't know the first thing about starting a new fae court or how easy or hard that would be.

Roisin's emotions were all over the place and he was tired as well. Maybe it was best for the both of them to get a good night's sleep and then they could attack everything in the morning. Maybe the packs could help.

Paul pulled her close and kissed the side of her head.

"We don't have to figure out everything right now. But no matter what, I'm with you Ro," he said seriously. Roisin stared at him a few moments before a small smile appeared and she pressed her lips against his.

"Always," she whispered.

****

Mae watched Paul and Roisin a few moments longer from the second-floor verandah, before turning to walk away. She knew that it was going to be harder to get Roisin to realize that they needed to go back to the Fae world once she had met Paul. But at the time, Mae thought it would be just like any other mortal.

Roisin would fall for him a bit, have her fun and then move on. He was turning out to be more of a pest than Mae had thought. And whatever this fucking imprint thing was.

At first, Mae thought she could do this on her own. She had talked a few solitaries to making a bit of a ruckus around the town. Not too much, but enough that it would draw attention and worry Roisin. Then Mae would swoop in and convince her to go back to the Fae world. But then that wasn't enough.

Stupid Paul had distracted her with the imprint thing. Please. As if a wolf would make a suitable partner for a royal fae like Roisin.

Narrowing her eyes, Mae kept walking until she was alone in her room, pacing around. She needed a new plan. And this time, it was probably best not to enlist the help of anyone from the Shadow Court. Cathal wasn't supposed to get involved, but Mae realized she had been too foolish. Of course, he was going to get involved if something happened that would benefit his court.

He had long wanted Roisin as part of it. This had been too close. But now at least it was over with. And Mae knew better than to try and make anymore deals with Shadow fae.

The stupid fae wasn't even supposed to take Tara - just scare the mortals. Then that would scare Roisin into leaving. When he had taken Tara, that was about the point that Mae realized what had started out as her plan was quickly dissolving into chaos and _nothing_ was in her control.

She hadn't wanted anyone to get hurt. No one was supposed to get hurt. And while she wouldn't have minded if Sean disappeared, she knew it would hurt Roisin too much. So she had gone to Cathal, hoping to call off everything. All that had gotten her was locked up for a few hours while Sean offered himself up. Again, this could have worked in Mae's favor if Roisin hadn't ended up kicking Cathal's ass. Now his pride was on the line and he wouldn't mess with her or Sean again until he knew he could take them.

Leaving Mae with the original problem. They were still in the mortal world. And Roisin and Sean were planning to run. Again. But this time they had the smelly wolf tagging along with them.

Groaning, Mae fell back on her bed and stared up at the ceiling. All she had wanted to do was to show Roisin that they weren't meant to be here. They were meant to be back in the Fae world. A hundred years had been far too long and Mae ached for home. Why couldn't Roisin see that?

And what was so bad about getting married? Riosin could do a lot worse. Rian was set to be a king. _And_ he was powerful, not to mention good-looking. He might even let her keep the mortal as a lover - it wasn't uncommon for royals to have their side pieces. But no, Roisin was willing to give that up so she could spend some time with a measly human that turned into a wolf.

Paul was ruining everything. And short of killing him (something Mae wasn't so keen on), she wasn't sure what to do.

She then sat up, her thoughts turning to the Winter Court. Mae had told Darraugh where they were and he gave Roisin a month. But what if Mae told Rian? Surely he would come and get them quickly if he knew they were about to go on the run again. He had made no such deal with Roisin to wait.

A smile drifted over Mae's face as she walked over to the window, and opened it. She then looked back towards the door, for a moment faltering. Roisin was her best friend and she had followed her here. Mae remembered the haunted look in her eyes when she had returned from the Winter Court for Rian's birthday. But she refused to say anything about what had happened. Just that she was running away...

But Roisin was thinking of no one but herself and her precious mortal right now. Running from her destiny that everyone knew she couldn't run from forever. It was with that thought on her mind that Mae hopped up on the window ledge and then took off into the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And now the truth comes out. Mae was behind everything all along. And now you see what I meant by how making it so fae can't lie was a bitch. I had to be super careful with that conversation between Mae and Ro at the school about who was behind the graffiti. Make sure that Mae was speaking in a way that was truth, but still hid that she was actually behind it. Though, at the end of the day, Mae really didn't want anyone to get hurt. She just wants them to go home together. And she doesn't know the truth about Rian. She's all sorts of hurt that Roisin, Sean and now Paul are keeping things from her. So, there's – hmm, I don't want to say fault, because that's not the right word, but things all around. But at the same time, Roisin should be the one to decide who she wants to know what happened to her. And she has her reasons for not wanting to tell Mae. And Mae is being a bit selfish, but I feel like she wouldn't resort to such measures if she either knew or just trusted Roisin a bit more.
> 
> I'm now about halfway finished with the last chapter, and well, I'm still on the fence with the bonus chapter. I started it, though now thinking about either completely leaving it out or adding it to the end of Chapter 31 with a fade-to-black. We'll see. I'm just not in the mood to write a love scene at the moment, but it may hit me before we get there. But I will definitely have all the writing on this story finished up this weekend. Probably today as it's still in the afternoon where I am.
> 
> Thanks everyone for reading and following!


	30. Break Before Dawn

Roisin sat on the couch, hugging a pillow as she watched the TV. Tara's miraculous return was all the news stations were talking about, even in Seattle. The teen girl thought whisked out to sea in a rip current was found alive (and relatively well) over two weeks later at a hospital in another town, though she couldn't remember anything.

Roisin had already been fielding phone calls and text messages from Megan, Trey and other students at Forks High. Even Tara's parents had called and asked her to stop by the hospital, but Roisin couldn't bring herself to go just yet.

Everything was still a bit too fresh.

As soon as Tara had woken up that morning, Sean erased her memories of the attack and time in Shadow. All she remembered was going surfing and then wandering along the coast, wanting to go back home before being taken to a hospital where for a time she couldn't remember who she was. Sean had gone with Sam and Paul to the hospital and altered enough memories there that they could get away with it, then explained as much as they could to Chief Swan when they gave him an "anonymous" tip of where to find her.

Everything after that happened rather quickly.

"So she's home?"

Roisin turned, seeing Mae walk into the living room still in her pajamas. Roisin nodded and turned back to the TV, watching yet another report.

"And no one is none the wiser," she said dryly, reaching for her phone and looking down at it, seeing more text messages pouring in.

"My phone was going crazy. Had to turn it off," Mae said. Roisin looked over at her, eyebrows raised in surprise. She never knew Mae to turn her phone off. "Just wanted to sleep…"

Right. Mae had been in Shadow Court as well. Roisin swallowed and then reached out for her hand.

"He didn't… did he hurt you?" she asked softly. Mae's eyebrows rose as she shook her head quickly, letting go of her.

"No. Cathal knew better than to do anything to me," she said. She then frowned as she looked to the TV. "Wish Tara had gotten better treatment…"

Roisin sighed and looked back at the TV as well.

"It was all my fault. She was only taken because Cathal found out I was here," she said glumly. "And then last night… someone could have seriously gotten hurt and it would have been my fault as well."

Neither said anything for a few moments before Mae reached over and took Roisin's hand.

"But she's okay now. She's going to be okay," Mae insisted. "And it wasn't your fault. Don't blame yourself."

Roisin snorted as she pulled her hand away and wrapped her arms around the pillow again.

"It is," Roisin said.

"Well… maybe we should go back. Go somewhere where we can't hurt mor-"

"I told you. I'm not going back," Roisin snapped looking over at Mae. "I can't go back."

Mae looked at her a moment and then opened her mouth to speak, but Roisin stood, cutting her off.

"We're leaving Forks, but I will not go back to the Fae world," she said, starting towards the kitchen.

"This is about Paul."

Roisin stopped and turned around, seeing Mae frowning at her as she stood.

"This is all because of that damn mortal you _think_ you're in love with," Mae shouted.

"I do love him," Roisin said. "Mae, we've imprinted-"

"Right. Some sort of weird wolf thing. Whatever," Mae said, already starting toward the stairs.

"Mae-"

"I'm done with this. I'll be packing," Mae shouted back, ending the conversation.

Roisin groaned and continued into the kitchen, finding Cara perched on a counter, a mug of tea in her hands.

"That sounded like fun," Cara said dryly.

Roisin sighed as she walked over to the fridge and pulled it open, grabbing a bottle of water.

"That's Mae. You know how she is. Still not sure why she wants to go back," she replied as she walked over and sat down at the island. "Where's Sean?"

"Checking out something in town," Cara said with a shrug as she hopped off the counter and walked over to Roisin. "How you feeling?"

"I'm… it's okay," Roisin said, frowning slightly. Cara chuckled.

"Surprised Wolf Boy's not nere," she said.

"He had to take care of some things at home. Pack up stuff. Talk to his dad and all," Roisin said. "He'll be here later tonight."

Cara leaned against the island, staring across it at Roisin. She couldn't help but squirm slightly under her intense scrutiny, not sure where this was coming from or what the Shadow fae would say next. She never really could tell with Cara, though she had long ago learned to trust her.

"You ever think you should stay?" Cara said finally. Roisin frowned and shook her head.

"No. You've seen everything that's happened. It's not safe for others being here," Roisin said. Cara rolled her eyes. "Cathal took my friend! And then tried to take me and Sean!"

"He would have done that anyway. May try to do it again, though not for a long time, I gather. You whooped him pretty good," Cara said, smiling slightly.

"This is more than just a fight, Cara. We could have a war on our hands and I really don't want that," she said sternly.

"Listen up, Ro. I'm going to be straight with you. There's always been a war even though you seem keen on burying your head in the sand. And you - yes, you - can stop it," Cara said sternly. "I'm not saying go back to your brother or even going to Winter. We all know marrying Rian won't stop his bloodlust. But facing him - fighting him - just might."

Roisin's eyes widened slightly as she felt her heart falter. Facing Rian? Fighting him? She didn't have the strength. Her chest grew tight as his eyes filled her mind.

"I can't do that," Roisin whispered, squeezing her eyes shut. "I can't face him."

"You can," Cara said softly. Roisin opened her eyes and looked across the island, finding a look of understanding in the Shadow fae's eyes. "From what I've seen lately, there's a hell of a lot you can do, Ro. A lot you might not even realize. And you'll always have me and Sean with you. Paul. We'll fight with you."

"But I don't… I want…" Roisin looked away, her brow furrowed as her heart raced. Face Rian? Was Cara losing it? She couldn't do that. It would put everyone she cared about at risk. They could get hurt or die. Rian wouldn't hesitate to kill any of them.

Roisin shook her head and stood abruptly.

"I don't want to talk about this anymore. I needed to pack," she said, starting towards the archway.

"Ro," Cara called out. Roisin stopped and looked over at her. The fae moved quickly, now in front of her. Cara took her hands and squeezed them. "It's going to be okay."

"Okay," Roisin said.

"But I was thinking… you can't just leave without saying good-bye," Cara said. "Don't know about you, but I'm going to miss the wolves." Roisin frowned slightly. What was she talking about? "I think we should have a farewell party."

"A party?" Roisin asked, her face clearly saying she didn't think it was a good idea. What was it with people and parties? Hadn't they all learned by now that a party didn't fix anything? Cara chuckled.

"Not a Mae party. Maybe a cookout. Invite the packs and the Cullens. Maybe the other fae," Cara said. Roisin still didn't speak. "Come on. You know you'll regret it if you don't. And it'll help Paul. He is leaving all his friends for you."

Roisin took a deep breath, the familiar sense of guilt welling up in her. She was taking him away from everything he knew. Finally, she nodded.

"Okay. I'll tell Paul," she said. Cara smiled and hugged her.

"It's going to be fine," she said softly.

"I hope so…"

****

Paul stood in his room, looking around. He didn't have a lot to begin with, but it felt weird seeing all his things packed up in boxes, ready for Sean to come pick them up. Sighing, he sat down on his bed, looking around. His whole life packed up into a few boxes.

While he knew that eventually one day he would be moving out, he never thought it would be like this. Going on the run. It was a bit overwhelming when he stopped to think about it too much. Which is why he tried not to go too deep.

He loved Roisin. He wanted to be with her. Keep her safe. And that's what he was doing.

"You already packed up?"

Paul looked up, seeing his father standing in his doorway. His weathered eyes scanned the room before stopping on him. Paul nodded. Sighing, Ben walked over and sat on the bed next to him. Paul glanced at him as his father seemed to be searching for words. He shifted around a bit, not completely comfortable with the situation, but knew that he needed to talk to his dad.

"It's going to be okay, you know?" Paul said. "I'll be fine."

Ben looked over at him, a small smile appearing as he shook his head and then rubbed his face as he leaned over on his knees.

"I know. But I'm still going to worry about you. I'm your dad. It's my job," he replied. "And you're not going to school or anything. You're going on the run."

Paul took a deep breath, wondering if he shouldn't have told his father everything about why he was leaving. Okay, so he hadn't exactly told him _everything_ \- had left out some things about what happened with Rian and Ro. But he was already starting to slightly regret it. He didn't want his father even more worried about him.

"But I get it. She's your imprint. You need to keep her safe," Ben continued. Paul nodded. "Just… be careful."

"I will, Pops," Paul said. Ben just shot him a look. Paul rolled his eyes. "I'm not that rash."

"You are sometimes. And never underestimate love. It'll make you do crazy things," Ben said with a soft chuckle. "Like going on the run with a woman you just met a few months ago."

"Imprint," Paul muttered, causing Ben to chuckle again.

"I get it. I may not fully understand it, but I do know that you care about her," Ben said, reaching over and placing and hand on Paul's shoulder. "Am I going to get to meet her before you leave?"

Paul chuckled and nodded.

"Yea, hopefully," he said. He felt a buzz in his pocket and pulled out his phone, reading Roisin's text. "Apparently soon. She's doing a farewell cookout with everyone. Said to bring you."

Ben's face lit up slightly. While he knew about wolves and vampires, Paul could tell his father was more than excited to meet the fae.

"She'll look normal to you," Paul said with a chuckle. "Unless you ask nicely. Then she might let you see more."

"But you see her all the time… as she is?" Ben asked. Paul nodded as he pushed up from the bed.

"More or less. She still tempers herself. Helps her to stay hidden," he replied, walking over to check a small box on his desk.

"And this Sean… he's okay with this?" Ben asked. Paul's eyebrows rose slightly as he looked over his shoulder at his father. "Just… the way you talk about all of them. Sounds like they're close."

"They are. And he understands. He's fine with everything," Paul said, turning back to his box. Though part of him wondered a bit. He already felt like there was more to that relationship, but didn't want to push it.

Roisin wanted him to come. Sean was okay with him going with them. Paul didn't want to try his luck.

"Well… guess, I'll let you finish up with this," Ben said, pushing up from the bed. "You staying here tonight?"

"Yea, though about to go over to Jared's for a bit," Paul said, rifling through the box.

"Okay. I'll have dinner ready for you when you get back," Ben said, already stepping out of the room.

Paul stopped and looked over his shoulder, sadness filling his chest. He knew he was doing the right thing by going with Roisin. And that not going would be far more painful than this. But he was going to miss La Push.

****

Paul was surprised to find Sam and Jacob in the gameroom at Jared's house. When they made plans to hang out, he had assumed that Embry and Quil would be there - which they were - but hadn't been expecting the two alphas to show up as well.

He fidgeted slightly and then walked over to the mini fridge, pulling out a soda, before walking over and sitting on the old couch.

"Do not tell me that you're all here for some sort of touchy-feely bullshit," he said, popping the tab open.

"Hey, I didn't invite them," Jared said from where he was playing a game of pool with Quil. "They just showed up."

"Embry told us you were hanging out," Jacob said, glancing at Embry, who shot wide and completely missed the dart board.

Embry frowned at him before walking over to pull the darts out.

"Didn't realize it was an exclusive thing," he said, slightly defensively as he handed the darts over to Jacob.

"It's not, I guess," Paul said, looking over at Sam who was shaking his head slightly, a small smile on his face.

"Just thought it would be nice to hang out a bit. You are leaving soon," Sam said, turning his attention to Paul. "You packed?"

"Yea, didn't take much. I think Sean is going to come by and get everything tomorrow. I'll stay with them until we head out," Paul said. "Oh, but Ro's doing a cookout-"

"Yea, she called me to let me know," Sam said, cutting him off. Paul looked up at him, wondering exactly when Roisin got his alpha's number. "Emily and I are helping with the food."

"I'm not sure what she's going to have me doing, but probably a lot," Paul said with a chuckle.

The conversation waned a bit as Jared and Quil kept up their game of pool and Jacob continued to beat Embry at darts. Paul chuckled at Embry's attempts to trash talk, finding that he really was going to miss seeing the packs all the time. Sam glanced over at him and then turned to face him.

"Where are you guys headed?" he asked.

"Some island in Southeast Asia," Paul said with a shrug. "We're not staying all that long. Just until all the final arrangements can be made for where we settle after that."

"Which is?"

"England. Another place that they think Darraugh won't look," Paul said, easily reciting off the plans they had been making.

While he would use his own passport to get to the island, Sean and Cara needed to get a new identity made for him and everything set up for them to "immigrate" to a new country.

At first it had all sounded rather complicated to him, but the more Sean explained things, the more Paul realized they had a good system. Helped that thanks to Sean being in the mortal world for so long, they had a substantial amount of money for everything. Apparently, he was good at making investments and owned property all over the world.

"Have you thought about what happens to you?" Sam asked softly. Paul glanced around the room, noticing that his friends had all stopped and were listening in.

"Well, I suppose if there are no vampires around, I'll stop shifting," he said nonchalantly. "Granted, I feel like there's always leeches around somewhere…"

"But you'll start aging again," Quil said. "If you're not shifting." Paul nodded slowly.

"That's what we're to believe," he replied.

"Ro won't age, though," Embry added.

"Thank you, Capt. Obvious," Paul said with a dry laugh.

To be honest, he and Roisin hadn't actually sat down and really discussed that. He wasn't completely sure how he felt about not being able to shift, other than he wouldn't be able to best protect Roisin. That he was going to miss. And well, being a wolf had given him a purpose. But he supposed his purpose now would be finding ways to keep Roisin safe, even if he could no longer shift. But at the same time, they weren't completely sure of everything when it came to fae and wolves. Maybe, like vampires, just being around them would let him keep shifting.

Or maybe not. He supposed they would find out when they arrived at the island.

The aging thing never bothered him, to be honest, though they would probably get weird looks the older he got. Yea, they should probably figure something out for that…

"So, you're seriously okay with the fact that you're going to die some day and your girlfriend won't," Embry said, breaking him out of his thoughts.

"It's not like I ever thought there would be a way for me to be immortal," Paul said, frowning slightly. He then remembered what drinking a lot of fae wine would turn humans fae. And once he was out of Forks or at least away from vampires, he'd be completely human again.

Wait. Was that something he wanted to do? Live forever with Roisin?

"I think he just now realized that part," Quil whispered loudly to Embry.

"It's not that… I… we haven't really talked about the future, to be honest," Paul grumbled slightly. "And before you start, we're not avoiding it. Just hasn't been extremely high on the priority list lately. We'll get to it."

He looked around the room, finally meeting the sympathetic look that Jared was giving him.

"I thought you guys all wanted to be normal again," Paul said, looking down at his soda.

"Not me," Embry said with a snort.

"Or me," Quil added. "And Jacob will never have to find out." Paul looked up, seeing Jacob roll his eyes.

"The point is… how are you handling all of this? A lot's happened in a short amount of time. We're worried that you're going to overwhelm yourself," Sam said evenly. Paul was grateful that he hadn't said that they were worried he was making a mistake.

Was it a bit rushed? Yes. Even a bit reckless? Hell, yes. But Paul knew with every fiber of his being that going with Roisin and doing whatever he could to help her was the right thing to do. Even if he wasn't completely convinced the answer to her problems (well, he now supposed they were his problems too) lie outside of Forks and La Push.

"I'm still processing, if I'm being honest. But I know that I need to be with her," Paul answered.

"Even if she accidentally sets shit on fire?" Embry asked. Paul shot him a look. "Hey, I think it's cool."

"She can't really control it all that well. The only time she's done it was when she was really emotional," Paul said, thinking back to the day of the fight with Cathal.

The flames were only in her hair and her wings then, but he had no doubt she would be able to conjure them around her completely in time. Hell, he had seen her do that as well, though he wasn't sure he wanted to bring that up right now. He glanced up at Jared and Sam, giving a small shake of his head. Jared just chuckled as Sam rolled his eyes.

"Wait, how do you know that?" Quil asked.

"You saw the fight," Paul said, returning his attention to his soda.

"Yea, but… you've seen her do it before, haven't you," Quil said, starting to smile. Paul glanced up at him, sure that his cheeks were starting to fill with color, though he glared at the wolf, urging him to shut up.

At least Sam hadn't shared the information with Jacob. Or if he had, Jacob had kept it to himself. It was hard not to think about their first time together when both of them had erupted into flames when he saw her fight and watched as the fire had started to consume her again. And because of that, his entire pack now knew what had happened. Granted they all knew better than to say anything about it - especially in front of Paul.

"Yea, so?" Paul nearly growled, waiting for the inevitable teasing. Quil glanced at Embry and walked over, sitting in a chair. Both of them looked as though they had Paul right where they wanted him.

"Tell us, what _emotions_ set your girlfriend on fire, literally?" Quil asked.

"You guys are idiots," Jacob muttered as Jared snorted. Sam even had the audacity to smile slightly, though covered it up quickly.

"Drop it," Paul said, narrowing his eyes at him, though Quil's grin only brightened as Embry walked over to him.

"Uh-uh," he said, his own grin just as bright. "It is… _wuve_?"

Quil chuckled as Embry pretended to make out with an invisible person.

At times, Paul forgot that they were still in high school. Right now he was definitely thinking they were in middle school.

"Knock it off," Sam ordered.

"Yea, I really don't care to have Paul destroy my gameroom," Jared added as Embry and Quil continued laughing and Paul continued glaring.

"Right," Embry replied wryly.

"I've beaten both of you before," Paul said, slowly standing from the couch and placing the can of soda on the coffee table.

They both shut up quickly as they saw the deadly smirk on his face. They knew that Paul was a stronger fighter and could probably take down both of them at the same time.

"Right, sorry," Quil said quickly.

"Same," Embry echoed.

Taking a deep breath, Paul returned to his original seat, picking up the can again.

"Now that _that's_ over," Jared said. He looked over at Paul. "When do you think you'll come back? Or… will you be able to?"

"Hopefully," Paul replied. "But probably not for a while. We'll keep in touch, though. Maybe visit. Or you can come visit us somewhere…"

Silence fell over the room as the rest of the group - well namely Embry and Quil - finally realized that there was a chance that Paul wouldn't return. It was always there, even though Paul was choosing to be optimistic about it.

"You'll be safe, yea? Don't go starting fights you're not sure you can win," Embry said.

"Yea. Ro's going to need you to watch out for her," Quil added. Paul nodded.

"I'll be fine," he said easily.

"You'll always have a place here. All of you," Sam said solemnly.

Paul nodded, thinking this was exactly what he was hoping wouldn't happen when he came over today. Everyone getting mopey and shit. Glancing up at his best friend, Jared just chuckled and shook head.

"I'm not about to turn into a sentimental mess. Still need to finish beating Quil," he said, already turning back to the pool table. Paul sighed in relief as Embry and Quil walked back over to return to their games.

His eyes then fell on Jacob, who was watching him closely.

"What is it?" Paul asked, eager to get it out of the way.

"Just… come back someday, okay?" Jacob said. Paul's eyes widened slightly, not expecting him to say that.

Jacob then nodded before turning back to the dart board. Okay, well, Paul supposed it was good that he had finally accepted the fae and all. And himself. Could have happened a bit sooner, in his opinion, but whatever.

"Sam, Paul. Get over here. As soon as I kick Quil's ass, we're doing doubles," Jared said just before sending a ball into the corner pocket. Quil groaned.

Paul looked over at Sam and then stood. This was what he was looking for by coming over tonight.

"I'm with Jared…"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since I'm so close to finishing up all the writing, thought I would do a double post. As you can see, with the dust settling after the fight with Cathal, things are starting to catch up to Paul and Roisin. But definitely not going to post again until I get the last chapter finished. And yea, figure out the bonus chapter. Will still keep to posting one or two a day until I figure that out. But for now… I'm going to take a nap and then hopefully return to writing in a bit.
> 
> Thanks everyone for reading and following!


	31. Winter is Coming

Paul stood on First Beach, taking in the restless waves as they crashed into the shore. He knew he needed to get back to Roisin's - there was still tons to do for the cookout that afternoon - but he wanted this time alone here to clear his head and enjoy the view. He wasn't sure when they would be back to La Push, even though Roisin assured him they could come back eventually.

This wasn't forever, Paul told himself. They would come back. They were just on the run for now. But soon they would figure a way out of it. Find a way to get Rian and Roisin's family off their backs and then they could really start their lives together. Maybe finally figure out just what that would be without the constant threat of Summer or Winter.

Sighing, he shook his head as he sat down on the sand and continued watching the waves. He knew more than anything that he wanted to be Roisin. But it still was proving harder than he thought it would be to leave.

And he couldn't help the growing feeling that they shouldn't run. That they should face Roisin's brother head-on. But everytime Paul had tried to bring it up, Roisin cut him off with some other task or question about leaving. Maybe he should speak to Sean about it. It seemed if anyone could get Roisin to listen, it would be him. Perhaps if Sean and Paul teamed up on this, they could convince Roisin not to run.

But that was _if_ Sean agreed. And Paul still wasn't sure if this was just a gut feeling or if it was his subconscious not wanting to leave the only home he had ever known. It was a bit ironic, seeing how he had been considering leaving La Push eventually and had even been a little bit jealous of Leah when she got out.

"Thought I'd find you here," Jared called out. Paul looked over and smiled slightly, turning back to the ocean. "Getting your fix? Thought you guys were going somewhere that had a beach."

"We are, but it's not the same," Paul said, taking a deep breath through his nose and committing the scent of the beach to memory.

"Mae still pissed?" Jared asked. Paul snorted and looked at his best friend.

"What do you think?" he asked. Jared chuckled and shook his head.

"I don't get it. She understands the imprint, right?" Jared asked. Paul shrugged. "There's no way that you weren't going with them."

"I know that. Sean knows that. Roisin knows it. But I'm beginning to think that Mae is attempting to delude herself," Paul said. He wasn't sure just what the fae had against him, but figured it was some sort of best friend thing.

It had been Mae and Roisin for the longest time. Then Sean. And now he was joining their little motley crew. Paul supposed she was still adjusting.

The two wolves then lapsed into silence for some time, both of them thinking about the same thing. That Paul was leaving with Roisin and they hadn't gotten any closer to figuring out what to do other than run.

"You ready to go?" Jared asked. Paul glanced at him and nodded. "Never thought you'd be the first to leave. Well, suppose you're the second after Leah - but we all expected that one.."

"Yea… never thought I'd leave either. Not like this, anyway," Paul admitted.

"On the run from a bunch of angry fae?" Jared said, his voice light, though Paul knew that it was mostly for his benefit. "Yea, I'm pretty sure there was no pool on that… running from an angry father or the law, sure. But angry fae - not even on the radar."

Paul chuckled and looked over at his best friend, his thoughts turning to everything they had been through together over the last few years. Shifting for the first time. Protecting the tribe from vampires and all that entailed. Not all that long ago, Paul was wondering what to do with the rest of his life with his biggest worry trying to figure out what he wanted to major in.

Now he was going on the run with his imprint, who happened to be powerful, runaway fae royalty. Oh, with a prophecy about her.

"You'll keep in touch, right?" Jared said.

"Of course. It's not like we have to go underground or anything," Paul scoffed.

"You never know… and well, Kim will be angry if you don't come back to visit," Jared added. Paul had to chuckle.

"Right. Kim?" he asked. Jared rolled his eyes.

"Just don't want this to be the last time I see you and all," Jared said.

"It won't. Maybe once we figure all this court shit out, we'll come back," Paul said.

"Still think you should have told the packs about her brother's ultimatum. You know us, we'd stick by you guys," Jared then said. Paul sighed and looked back at the ocean.

"I know. I tried to get her to come clean on that with you all, but Ro's still pretty adamant that we need to leave before something worse happens," Paul said. "No one got hurt with Cathal, but she doesn't want to chance it a second time."

"Everything ready for the cookout?" Jared then asked, changing the subject. Paul nodded and pushed up from the beach.

"In fact, I should probably get my ass in gear before Ro comes after me," he said, holding a hand out to Jared to help him up.

"Yea, that's probably not a good idea. I remember what she did with that Shadow dude," Jared said. "Better be careful with choosing your battles. She might set you on fire."

Paul chuckled as they started back up towards the parking lot.

"You've been in my head… been there, done that. But I'm pretty sure one thing I _don't_ have to worry about - life is definitely not going to be boring with Ro…"

****

Paul looked around the full house, glad that Ro had done it. All the packs were there, as were their imprints, the tribe elders, and his dad. The Cullens had come as well - including Nessie, who was at the moment chasing Seth, Brady and Collin around the yard. Thanks to Roisin, the weather was nice and balmy, though Paul still didn't understand just how it was she did it. Roisin admitted that morning that she wasn't completely sure either, as it had been another recent development.

All fae who had fought with them had shown up, mingling around with the wolves. It was far more low-key than Mae's parties with a more casual air. Sam was at the grill with Emily and Roisin flinting in between the verandah and the kitchen, refilling food. Roisin was making a point to try and talk with everyone in the process. The house was rather full.

She was far more relaxed, he noted. Probably because they were leaving in only a few days and had a plan, albeit a rough one. Though, he knew she wouldn't feel completely okay until they put as many miles between them and her brother as possible.

"She's happier today," Sean said, popping up next to Paul and causing him to jump slightly. He scowled at the shadow fae, though Sean only smirked in response.

Guess this was one of the things Paul was going to have to get used to. The fae popping up at random times. He looked back over, seeing Roisin stopping to talk to Kim.

"Yea. Even though this is essentially a farewell party," Paul said.

"You don't seem so happy," Sean said. Paul turned, finding the fae studying him closely - something he had been doing a lot of lately.

"I mean, I'm happy to go with you guys," Paul said. "Don't get me wrong. I'm more than happy with Ro. It's just… kind of hard to leave, you know?"

He looked back out at the room, taking in the packs. His family. Yea, it was definitely turning out to be more bittersweet than he thought it would be. But he had promised Roisin. Where she went, he went.

"She looks like she fits in," Sean then said. Paul glanced at him again and then went back to watching Roisin joke around with Jared.

In that moment, he could feel her. And she did feel at home. Paul wasn't sure if it was a part of Roisin that she recognized, but it was there nonetheless. A soft smile came over his face. It still felt good to see her getting along with the packs and their imprints and families. How well she got on with his dad when he introduced them earlier. His father had been slightly in awe, though Roisin had been fairly nervous.

Especially since she was essentially whisking his son off to potential danger. At least his dad was used to him being in danger.

"I've actually been thinking about the prophecy a lot lately," Sean said. Paul turned back to him, unsure of where he was going with this. Sean's eyes were fixed on Roisin. "I think we were so caught up in the Fae world, that we forgot to think bigger."

"Bigger?" Paul asked, his eyes widening slightly. Sean nodded slowly.

"Maybe she's not meant to bring together the fae courts… maybe she's meant to bring together other worlds," Sean said, glancing at him. Paul was about to protest, but then stopped and looked around the room again.

Emmett Cullen was attempting to talk a fae that looked as though it was literally made out of rock into an arm-wrestling match while Rosalie rolled her eyes. The fae in question was game, grinning broadly at the vampire. Brendan and Carlisle were caught up in a deep discussion on fae healing. Alice and Jasper were standing in another small group that included fae and wolves, while a fae with long, near white braids was asking about her ability to see into the future. Edward and Bella stood in another group of only fae, Edward seemingly still surprised that he couldn't hear anyone's thoughts while Bella teased him. Embry was busy flirting with another fae, while Quil played wingman. Roisin was still talking to Kim and Jared, though Jacob walked up and tossed an arm around her shoulder, commending her on her cooking skills as Emily and Sam carried more platters of food in from the grill and headed towards the kitchen. Roisin smiled up at him and then looked across the room, meeting Paul's eyes, her smile growing.

Paul wondered just why he hadn't seen it before. True, the Cullens and wolves had stood together for a while now. But seeing how easily she had earned their respect, then brought the fae into their world. How easily it all seemed to fit together though it probably shouldn't have.

As he watched her, Roisin's skin began to glow a bit brighter, the sun starting to rise just under the surface. She felt more than content right now. She felt happy, accepted. Home.

"It seems I was right. You _were_ the key," Sean said. Paul looked over at him, yet again confused. "By imprinting on Ro… you helped create this. Worlds that were once broken, now made whole. Though I'm not sure just how long ago they were broken… I can't ever remember the fae being friendly with wolves or vampires… must have been a really long time ago..."

"But… we're still leaving," Paul said.

Even if _this_ was what the prophecy was talking about, Darraugh was still coming for Roisin. Possibly Rian. If he was anything like Roisin described, Paul didn't see him giving up just because she had brought together these groups like this. The Winter prince wouldn't let her go so easily from what it sounded like.

"Maybe it's time to stop running. For Ro to finally face her brother and Rian," Sean said. "I think she can do it. Especially if she's got us to stand behind her. Though... would probably help if you two got hitched before then…"

Paul choked on his drink and looked back over at Sean, unsure if he was joking or not. Yea, sure Paul knew that he loved her, wanted to be with her, and the imprint had sped up the normal dating process for them. But he still wasn't even 19 yet - still had a couple months to go. He wasn't ready for anything like marriage. Was he? Was Roisin? Sean just raised an eyebrow at him.

"It was only a suggestion," he replied as he looked back at Roisin. "Just a way to further solidify your connection, though perhaps the imprint will be enough. And I know you've been thinking the same thing. That we should stay and face her brother, that is."

"Right, yea," Paul said, still sputtering a bit. Sean took a deep breath and sighed.

"So, when should we tell her?" he asked pointedly, not wasting time. "Maybe you should tell her. She's less likely to hit you… And even if she does, the make-up sex would be well worth it."

"No, we're telling her together," Paul said, frowning at Sean and slightly surprised that his jealousy that always seemed to pop up with others didn't seem to apply with Sean. Whatever. Now wasn't a time to ponder on that. "I tell her and she'll think I'm trying to convince her to stay here because _I_ don't want to leave. We both tell her together."

Sean cracked a small smile and nodded.

"I'm really going to like having you around, Paul…"

****

Roisin dropped off the plate of new hamburger patties on the table next to the grill and then quickly checked over to make sure that Sam had everything, before turning to go check on everything in the kitchen. The wolves could certainly go through food, though the fae could as well, now that she thought about it. They did have a lot of people here even if the Cullens didn't eat or drink anything.

But before she could walk into the kitchen, Jared looped his arm through hers, dragging her over to a cooler and table of drinks set up outside.

"You and I are doing a shot, Ro," he said, grinning at her. "And seriously, the weather thing that you do… going to miss it."

Roisin's eyes widened slightly as she looked into the house and saw Paul standing with Sean, the two of them deep in conversation about something. Probably their plans. Though where was Mae? She usually loved these things. While she had spent a good portion of her time sulking in her room lately, Roisin had hoped she'd come down for at least a little bit.

"Ahem."

Roisin turned to Jared, seeing him holding out a shot glass of tequila expectantly. Rolling her eyes, she took it, smiling slightly at him

"Is this where you give me _the talk_?" Roisin asked, smirking. "And promise to kick my ass if I ever hurt Paul?"

"Nah, I know you won't. Unless he's an asshole and deserves it. Which, to be honest, he does occasionally," Jared said, holding his glass out. Roisin clinked hers against his, and then they both drank their shots. "And honestly, you could probably kick _my_ ass, now that I think about…"

Roisin chuckled as she looked back into the house, seeing everyone still mingling and getting along. If you had told her a few months ago that she would be playing host to fae, wolves and vampires, she wouldn't have believed it.

Part of her was sad that she would find this unique, yet warm group just before she had to leave. Roisin's smile faltered slightly. Part of her wished they could stay, settle down in Forks - she _had_ felt like this was where she was supposed to be from the beginning, after all - but that was impossible. Her brother would be back and she knew that he wouldn't be convinced to leave her alone. Not yet, anyway.

"It's hard to leave, isn't it?" Jared asked softly. Roisin looked over at him, seeing the sad smile on his face. She nodded and looked at the yard, watching Nessie laugh as she played tag with some of the younger wolves.

"It's never been this hard to leave a place," she admitted. "Once it's over, I want to come back. We're not selling the house and land… just in case…"

"Good to hear you're thinking of coming back. I know I'm going to need Paul to be my best man in a few years," Jared said with a chuckle. "And well, I suppose you guys could just shoot me an email to let me know where to be for your wedding."

Roisin looked back at him, her eyes wide and her cheeks flush. Sure, she had a few passing thoughts about it, but for the most part, she hadn't seriously thought about marrying Paul. Not until now, anyway. Jared laughed loudly.

"Knock it off, Jared. Give the poor girl a chance to breathe," Emily chided from the grill. "Even Sam and I aren't married yet."

Roisin shot the woman a grateful smile before turning back to Jared, a playful frown on her face.

"I may be 150, but I'm still rather young in fae years," she said. "There's still plenty of time…"

Though even as she said it, she knew the truth. It wasn't going to be nearly as long as she wanted. Not unless they managed to convince a vampire to follow them around and then forever live in Forks. Maybe that was a possibility… Well, no. It wasn't. That meant forcing all the packs to never age and Roisin wasn't sure if that was what they all wanted.

"See? Plenty of time," Emily added before she looked at Sam and kissed him.

"What's this, not getting weepy, are we?"

Roisin looked up, smiling instantly as she saw Paul and Sean walking out on the verandah. She walked over and fell into Paul's arms, closing her eyes as she reveled in his warmth. For a moment, she forgot about everything standing against them and just enjoyed this. Being with him. Feeling his arms around her.

"Okay, I was joking," Paul said. Roisin looked up at him.

"I'm not crying. Not yet, anyway," she admitted.

"Aha! Knew it! Ro is going to miss all of us!" Jared shouted triumphantly.

"Of course I am, you idiot," Roisin replied looking over at him. Goddess, how had she managed to get this close to people so quickly?

"Come on. Take a walk with us," Paul said softly.

Roisin nodded as she stepped back and took his hand, walking in between Sean and Paul as they made their way through the yard and into the clearing behind the house.

"So… Sean and I have been talking," Paul started out, a nervous hitch to his voice. Roisin looked up at him, a bit worried when she saw the anxiety in his eyes. She then looked at Sean, though his face betrayed nothing.

"About what?" she asked. Paul took a deep breath and stopped, turning to face her as Sean stepped over to his side.

"We were thinking we shouldn't leave," Paul said. Roisin frowned. Not leave?

"That makes no sense. We know that Darraugh is going to come back here for me," she said automatically.

"Ro, maybe it's time to really face him. Face your family," Sean said softly.

"But they won't listen," Roisin said.

"They would if you told them the full truth about why you ran away. Why you can't be with Rian," Sean replied. "They would understand."

Roisin's eyes widened as her cheeks flushed again, but she wasn't sure if it was anger or fear. She didn't think she could tell them. Not what Rian had done to her. Paul squeezed her hands, causing her to meet his eyes.

"You can do it. And we'll be with you," he said. "Me and Sean. Even Mae, if you tell her too."

Roisin felt her heart begin to race slightly at the idea of it. Seeing her family. Telling Mae. Telling them how Rian had hurt her. Maybe it could work. Wait… it couldn't.

"You know how deals are," she said grimly, looking at Sean. "I don't think even _that_ would get me out of the betrothal. Rian would still come for me…"

"But what if you've already fulfilled the prophecy. They couldn't argue against that, could they?" Paul said. She looked at him, confused. When had she done that? Unless…

"You think the imprint could be enough?" she asked, not quite believing it herself. "I'm not sure…"

"It's more than that, Ro," Sean said, stepping closer to her. "Have you stopped to look around?"

Roisin frowned, not understanding what he was talking about. Just as she started to look back to the house, a chill ran down her back. And not from her emotions. It was a literal chill. Like the first bite of winter.

Her head whipped around toward the far end of the clearing, fixed on the trees.

"No," she whispered, her breath starting to come out in misty puffs. "No. No. No."

She felt Paul tense. Could see him and Sean turn to look where she was staring out of the corner of her eye. But even holding onto Paul's hand right now couldn't stop her from shivering involuntarily.

Roisin started backing away, her eyes wide in terror.

"It can't be," she whispered.

But suddenly, she stopped as though her feet were frozen to the ground. Unable to look away. The trees began to rustle until finally a lone fae stepped out and stopped. A smirk came across his pale face as his ice blue eyes settled on her. Even though he was far from her, she could feel the frigid cold that seemed to follow him wherever he went. Roisin shook her head, not wanting to believe her eyes. But it was true. Her eyes weren't lying to her. This wasn't one of Cathal's tricks.

Rian had found her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And now you see why I needed to add in the last chapter. In my previous plans, the story jumped from the fight with Cathal to Rian arriving, and I realized that was a bit too intense. Plus, it didn't give me enough space to explain what happened with Tara and how that went down (probably because I originally hadn't intended her to be taken – just that one of Roisin's mortal friends got serious hurt by a fae). And well, I wanted more of Roisin bonding with the wolves, more Paul bonding with his father and Sean. I needed to flesh out those relationships a bit more, and this works out much better.
> 
> But yea, I've now finished writing. I'm going through and doing final edits on everything and posting chapters as I go. There's really only about three more chapters after this – plus the bonus steamy chapter that will go up on AO3 only. I wasn't sure if I was going to do one yesterday as I just wasn't feeling it. But after a good night's sleep, I woke up with inspiration and got it written after starting over completely in a relatively short time.
> 
> And whoever was guessing that the prophecy wasn't talking about just the fae courts… you're about to get your answers in the next chapter.
> 
> Thanks for reading and following!


	32. Summer's Revenge

For a moment, Roisin felt like she couldn't breathe. Her eyes were fixed across the clearing on the fae she had spent the last 100 years running from. That haunted her nightmares and the darkest reaches of her mind. She hoped that she would never see him again, and here he was.

Rian.

He smirked at her, lifting his chin slightly. Roisin didn't realize she was shaking until Paul wrapped his arm around her and warmth ran through her. She looked up at him, trying desperately to latch onto his strength, but finding herself failing miserably.

"We won't let him take you," he assured her, glancing over to Sean.

"Kindly remove your filthy arm from my betrothed," a cold voice called out. Roisin looked over, her eyes meeting Rian's as another spike of cold shot through her. He was seething at Paul, his eyes narrowing. " _She_ belongs to _me_."

"Over my dead body," Paul growled, his grip on her waist tightening, though Roisin barely noticed.

"Oh, that can be arranged," Rian replied, his lips curling up into a sadistic smile.

"Stop it," Roisin said, her voice sounding pathetically weak to her own ears.

This only encouraged Rian as he took another step forward, his eyes now fixed on Roisin again, a possessive glint in them.

Roisin looked to the ground, her heart pounding as the temperature around her continued to drop. She could hear and feel people behind her, and she knew without turning that everyone at the party had made their way over, sensing something was wrong. She only hoped that they got the mortals out of there quickly.

"Do we have a problem?" Sam shouted sternly, getting Roisin's attention. He was now standing next to Paul, a stern frown etched on his face.

"Stand aside, mortal. _This_ doesn't concern you," Rian said, still as ice, though his cruel eyes had shifted over to him. "I'll only give you one last warning."

"Fuck you," Paul shouted back, now bristling as he narrowed his eyes at Rian, obviously fighting to maintain control of his anger. "You don't have any claim on Roisin and we're not about to let you take her anywhere."

Roisin swallowed, trying to muster up strength from somewhere. Though she knew that this day would likely come, she knew she wasn't ready. Not now. Even standing on the opposite side of the field from him, she could feel his cold sinking into her bones. Memories threatened to take over and reduce her to a sobbing mess. But she couldn't fall apart. Not now. Not here. Not in front of him.

"How did you find me?" Roisin asked, hating herself for the quiver in her voice.

"I've been looking these last 100 years. And, I would have found you on my own, eventually, but I will admit I had help from the most unexpected of sources," Rian said.

His eyes moved to someone behind her and Roisin turned, part of her already knowing who he was looking at. Her heart seized and then splintered. Not her best friend. Perhaps she should have told her the truth.

Mae walked through the group, a sad, yet determined look on her face as she stopped a few feet away from Roisin.

"I had to do it, Ro. You wouldn't listen. And nothing else worked," she said solemnly.

Roisin swallowed, feeling tears pricking her eyes as she shook her head, not wanting to believe that Mae would betray her like this.

"What did you do?" Sean growled, suddenly at her side, glaring down at her.

Mae whimpered as she stepped back, overcome by whatever nightmares he was drawing from her mind, but Cara was already there, stopping her. Mae looked back and forth between the two Shadow fae.

"I just wanted Ro to see that we don't belong here! That we would go back to the Fae world!" Mae shouted. "No one was supposed to get hurt!"

"But someone did," Cara said, her voice full of menace.

"And can't you see what this is doing to Ro?" Sean added.

Mae met Roisin's eyes, who was now shaking uncontrollably as Paul wrapped his arms around her, attempting to warm her up, but this time it wasn't working. Even though she could feel the heat radiating from his body, it couldn't seem to penetrate her skin.

"Don't hurt her," Roisin whispered. "She doesn't know."

"It doesn't matter. She knew that you didn't want to marry him!" Sean roared, inching closer to Mae. "As her best friend, you should have understood!"

Mae yelped in fear, cowering away from him.

"So this is the Winter prick," Jacob said, his eyes fixed on Rian.

"Yes… the foul Winter prince," Niamh said, glaring across the field.

Another bout of cruel laughter got Roisin squeezing her eyes shut a moment before she looked over at him.

"Haven't you heard? I'm now king. Unfortunate accident with some of Cathal's people," he said, seeming rather pleased. Roisin was fairly sure whatever had killed King Fionn had nothing to do with Cathal, nor was it an accident. "And it's time for me to collect my queen. It's what's owed me." His eyes flashed silver.

Paul immediately positioned himself in front of Riosin as she wrapped her arms around herself, feeling far too cold. As though the sun inside her was being snuffed out. She couldn't stop shaking. Then the memories flooded her mind and wouldn't stop. Roisin gripped the sides of her head, her eyes squeezing shut again.

"Ro?" Mae said, her voice full of worry.

"You don't get to be worried," Sean snapped.

"Make it stop," Roisin whispered, feeling Rian's hand around her neck. The ice spreading through her veins, freezing her from the inside out. Her legs began to shake and she nearly buckled and collapsed.

"What happened?" she heard Mae asked. "Let me go to her!"

Roisin could hear people talking around her, but all she could focus on was Rian's voice in her head. And she felt cold. So, deathly cold. She just wanted it to stop, but it wouldn't.

"Ro, come back to us," she heard Sean say, but it sounded like he was coming from far off.

"Shit… hold onto our voices, Ro. You're okay," Paul said. "It was in the past… come back…"

But Roisin wasn't in the clearing. She was in the room at the Winter Palace, cowering in the corner as Rian stalked towards her, an evil grin filling his face as he pulled off his shirt and tossed it to the ground, then cracked his knuckles.

_You are mine and no one else will ever have you…_

The biting cold of his touch. The ice skating across her skin, at first painfully cold but then numb.

"Stop," she sobbed. "Make it stop, please!"

Her fear was whipping up into a frenzy inside her like a blizzard, as her chest tightened and she struggled to drag air into her lungs. But just under that, there was something else. Anger. Anger for what he did to her - for what he was still doing. For spending years broken and terrified. The anger began to grow, flowing through her like lava, chasing away the cold and melting the ice that was starting to encase her heart. Roisin latched onto it like it was her last lifeline.

"STOP!" she shrieked.

Everything fell still. After a couple of quick breaths, Roisin opened her eyes, finding Paul and Sean now standing a couple feet away from her on both sides, the ground around her scorched. She then looked up, seeing a look of mild surprise on Rian's face.

She lowered her hands, finding herself no longer afraid to meet his eyes as she stared him down. Taking a deep, measured breath, she lifted her chin slightly as she squared her shoulders.

"I'm not going with you," she said, her voice stronger. "I don't belong to you."

Rian regarded her a moment before sighing and shaking his head.

"I knew you wouldn't make this easy," he said, his voice light. "But... suppose that makes it more fun. More worth it when I claim my prize in the end."

Abruptly, tons of Winter fae stood just behind him, materializing from the trees with their eyes trained on the group. Sean and Paul quickly moved closer to her sides, their eyes fixed on the now large group across from them.

They were outnumbered, that was clear to see. But Roisin knew there was no turning back at this point. One way or another, this was all going to end today.

"We take out Rian and the others will stop," Roisin said softly, her eyes drifting along Rian's soldiers. "You guys with me?"

Sean grinned, his shadows starting to grow around him.

"You know I am," he vowed. Roisin then looked at Paul. A wicked smile slowly spread across his face.

"Let's end this."

In a split second, everyone erupted into action. Roisin's wings spread out behind her, flames coating them as she, Paul and Sean launched forward. Just another half second later, Paul smoothly shifted, his wolf erupting out of his clothes. If Rian or any of his were shocked, they didn't show it as they started towards them as well.

She could hear the growls and rumbling of the rest of the packs behind her, as well as shouts from the fae.

In the next second, Roisin's fist connected with a Winter fae's face, launching it through the air and into a tree as she heard the battle pick up around her. With Sean and Paul still at her sides, they started fighting their way towards Rian, who was grinning maniacally at them through the fray.

"Oh, this will be fun…"

****

All Paul could see was red as he chomped down on another fae, easily tossing it aside as he kept pace with Roisin and Sean. Flames were dancing in her eyes and hair as she fought, Sean's shadows moving around them, stopping fae in their tracks. He could hear the roar of the fight behind him, hear his pack in his head shouting out directions to each other. While he worried about them, Paul had to stay focused.

They needed to get to Rian. It was the only way to end this.

Even without being able to communicate with them, he could tell that Roisin and Sean shared the same thought, the three of them easily fighting their way through the Winter fae until finally the three of them came to a stop in front of the Winter king, who looked as though he had been casually waiting for them.

"This is an improvement," he said, his eyes raking up and down her body, taking in the flames spreading through her wings and hair and dancing around her hands.

"Yea, new thing," she said, her eyes narrowing.

Before anyone could say anything else, Sean's shadows had wrapped themselves around Rian. Sean narrowed his eyes at him, though Rian only raised an eyebrow in return.

"Really, Sean?" he asked as the shadows froze and then fell to the ground in pieces.

Paul snarled as Sean's glare deepened and everything about him grew darker. But it had no effect on Rian, who merely appeared just in front of him, grabbed the Shadow fae and tossed him aside as though he was a rag doll.

Not giving himself time to be stunned - Paul had seen Sean fight before and knew that Rian must be much stronger - Paul lunged towards the Winter king. He then stopped abruptly when he painfully collided snout-first with a wall of ice that formed out of nowhere. With a high-pitch squeal of pain, he hopped back and then shook his head, feeling a bit disoriented.

Roisin bellowed in rage, sending a blast of heat that had the wall splintering and then bursting apart. Almost before Paul or Sean could recover, she was on Rian, the two of them locked in a fierce hand-to-hand fight.

For a moment, Paul almost couldn't follow them, they were moving so quickly. But he then looked over and met Sean's eyes, who nodded at him. Rian was strong, that was certain. It was going to take all three of them working together to take him down.

Paul launched forward, managing to latch onto one of Rian's arms as he shouted in pain. While he was distracted trying to shake off Paul, Sean grabbed hold of the other as Roisin glared at him. But before she could reach him, Paul felt painfully cold ice fill his veins. He tried to hold on, but found himself flying back through the air and hitting the ground hard.

For a moment, he wasn't sure where he was as he looked around, seeing wolves, vampires and fae fighting. Ice littered the ground, as did bodies, but he wasn't sure who was who or who was dead. The only obvious thing was that they were losing. They were outnumbered and the Winter fae were stronger fighters than the Shadow fae had been. Paul lifted up to his feet, but then stumbled, falling back down. He needed to get up. He needed to get back to Roisin. But for a moment, he couldn't move as he watched Sean get launched through the air and hit a tree, not moving once his body was on the ground. Looking over, he saw a Winter fae shove a dagger of ice into Niamh's stomach, the tree-like fae's face frozen in shock as the ice spread over her body quickly.

Shit. They _were_ losing. He needed to get to Roisin.

Out of nowhere, there were three new people standing still in the middle of the fray. Paul immediately recognized Darraugh and he assumed the other two must be Roisin's parents, considering the red hair. He breathed heavily, shoving himself up to his feet, but staggering a bit as Darraugh met his eyes.

 _RO! WE NEED TO SAVE HER!_ he shouted in his mind, even though he knew the fae couldn't hear him. In an instant, more fae flooded the clearing and Paul was almost joyful even though he had no idea how they knew what was going on. Summer was here and they were helping.

He then turned his head, looking over to see Roisin still fighting with Rian. She was beginning to struggle, the flames starting to retreat from her wings and hair. No. She had to keep fighting.

Paul began lumbering towards them, unsure of where the strength was coming from, but not wanting to give up just yet. He began to pick up speed, seeing a bloodied Sean doing the same thing from the other side.

There was a resounding _boom_ as Rian slammed Roisin to the ground that nearly had him back prone on the ground. She gripped Rian's hand around her neck, struggling against him as ice began to spread across her body.

_No… no! NO!_

Paul forced himself forward.

_Fight back, Ro! FIGHT BACK!_

It was as though his legs had turned into blocks of ice, slowing him down. As the cold spread through his body, Paul knew that it wasn't his imagination. He came to a stop a few feet away, struggling against it, seeing Sean in the same state just a few feet to the other side.

A manic grin came over Rian's face as he looked down at her, watching as Roisin slowly stopped moving, her lips turning blue.

"This could have been so much easier for you," he said, stopping the ice. "Don't worry, I'm not going to kill you… but I _am_ going to kill them and make you watch…"

"RO! NO!"

Paul, still struggling to try and move forward though he was becoming more lethargic, looked over, seeing Darraugh already moving towards them, a sword drawn. But suddenly, a wall of ice cut him off. It was just him, Sean, Roisin and Rian now.

"Stop, please," Roisin gasped. "Don't kill them…"

"Too late, darling. Can't have any potential rescuers coming to your aid," Rian said. "Maybe if you concede defeat now, I'll let the others live."

Roisin looked over at Sean, who could barely keep his eyes open and then over at Paul, finally meeting his eyes. He could see the flames starting to die out as she reached for him.

 _Ro… I love you,_ Paul whimpered.

"I… I love you too," she said, her voice raspy. Her eyes then widened in surprise. Had she just heard him?

"How touching," Rian said dryly.

Paul was vaguely aware of someone pounding on the ice wall as he fought to keep his eyes open and locked on Roisin's. The flames returned as she took a deep breath. She then squeezed her eyes shut. Rian laughed, but it was cut short as he stared down at her in shock.

"What are you doing?" he hissed. Steam began to rise, the ice coating Roisin melting with a loud hiss. Soon Rian shouted in pain, his grip on her loosening. Roisin's eyes then flew open.

"Ending this."

Suddenly, there was an explosion. Paul felt the ice break away from his body as he ducked his head. When he looked back, his eyes widened in shock as he somehow found the strength to jump back to his feet.

The ice wall was gone and Rian was on his back a few feet away, his eyes wide in fear, fixed on a fiery tornado that had appeared. And in the middle of it was Roisin.

****

She wasn't sure just what had happened, but Roisin felt different. For a second, she had been close to giving up. Of admitting defeat. Rian was too strong. She would always be weaker. And he was going to force her to watch as he killed Paul and Sean.

Paul.

Hearing his voice in her head, it somehow helped clear up the cold fog that had come over her. She loved him. And she couldn't let him die. Rian could hurt her all he wanted, but he couldn't kill Paul. Or Sean. That was the moment that something deep inside her had snapped. Like a door flying open and floods of power and heat and fire coursed through her.

Now, Roisin felt strong. Stronger than ever. For a moment, she closed her eyes, allowing it to roll over her. But then she opened them and looked down, seeing Rian cowering in fear. Of her.

A grin spread across her face as the tornado of flames disappeared, all of the fire sucked into her, clinging to her body as she lowered herself to the ground. As she landed, Paul and Sean appeared at her sides. She looked at Sean, who was smiling in relief and then over at Paul, who was growling at Rian.

She then looked back at the stunned Winter king. Sure, she could probably take him on all on her own now, but what was the fun in that?

 _Take him out, Ro,_ she heard Paul growl in her mind. It was a bit disorienting, but she was willing to go with it. Imprint thing.

 _We'll do it together,_ she replied.

She reached out, one hand tangling itself into Paul's fur as the other gripped Sean's hand. The flames quickly spread to them as all three became alight in a fiery blaze. She wasn't sure just how she knew how to do that, but it didn't matter at this point.

"Never mess with the people I love," she uttered, her gaze fixed on Rian, who managed to scramble to his feet, his look now defiant.

With a shout, the three of them descended on him. Rian barely had a chance to fight back. Anytime he tried to use his ice, it was dissipated by Riosin's flames or Sean's now fiery shadows. Paul then leapt forward, sinking his teeth into Rian's shoulder and dragging him forward as the Winter king screamed in pain, burns started to appear on his pale skin.

As Paul held him in place, Roisin glared down at him, years of anger flowing through her. She wanted to kill him. And she should.

"Please! I'll leave! I'll never bother you again!" the Winter king pleaded. Roisin grinned.

"Give me one good reason why I should let you live," she said.

"I have no heir!" he shouted.

"Not my problem," Roisin retorted.

"I renounce my claim! On you! I'll, I'll keep the peace accord!" Rian shouted.

Roisin stopped for a moment, stunned. She nearly couldn't believe the blubbering idiot on the ground before her was the fae that had terrorized her for most of her life. It almost didn't feel right to kill him. Not like this.

"You're pathetic," she said, staring at him.

It wasn't worth it, killing him, she realized in that moment. She decided she would let him live. Let him spend eternity or how ever long he got living with his shame. Knowing that she had beaten him. That he no longer held power over her.

"STOP!"

Roisin's eyes widened as she looked to Sean, who was staring back at her in confusion, the ground shaking beneath their feet. The three of them then slowly turned around, seeing a woman standing in the middle of the now silent and still field, her eyes fixed on Roisin.

Oh shit.

Every fae instantly dropped to their knees, all bowing towards the woman - everyone except Roisin who only glared at her. The woman didn't seem upset by this, merely curious. She took a step towards her, her long silver hair flowing effortlessly down her back and her lilac eyes bright. She exuded youth and age at the same time. Calm and wisdom.

 _Who is that, Ro?_ she heard Paul ask in her head.

_It's her… Clodaugh… the goddess who delivered my prophecy..._

"You do not bow to me," Clodaugh stated, speaking slowly as she tilted her head to the side.

"Forgive me if I don't feel the need," Roisin said, not even bothering to hide her anger. "This is all your doing. You and your fucking prophecy."

Slender, elegant eyebrows rose as the woman looked around the field at the various fae, wolves and vampires. Some grimousing in pain. There was blood staining the grass. And just behind Roisin she could feel the chill of Rian. For a time she wanted to paint the ground with his blood. But even if that's what she had decided to do, it seemed it wouldn't have happened anyway.

Clodaugh chuckled, a soft melodious sound.

"This is not my doing. I merely stated what I had seen. This… is your doing, child. They fight… for you," she said. Roisin frowned. "For centuries there has been unbalance and unrest among the fae. Between the fae world and this one. The creatures that dwell here. My sisters and I long sought an answer to this problem. A way to bring peace to the children we have created. And long it has evaded us… until you."

"I won't marry him," she said, now glaring as she felt Paul move to her side, now growling at the ancient fae. Clodaugh laughed, this time much louder.

"Marrying the Winter King will not fix what was broken," she said. "That is not what the prophecy meant." She cast a disappointed glance towards Roisin's parents, who she hadn't even realized were there until now. When had they shown up? "Think, my child, what did it say?"

"A child of summer shall be born on the most sacred of days," Roisin recited instantly.

"And…"

Roisin sighed in frustration. They had been over this thing a million times.

"And through her power, shall there be peace. Worlds once broken shall be reunited and under her reign shall they prosper," she said.

Clodaugh smiled and looked around.

"Have you not done so already?" she said, motioning around. Roisin frowned and looked around in confusion. She hadn't done anything. "A child of summer that has embraced Shadow." Roisin looked over at Sean. "Befriended mortals. Drawn solitary to her. Aligned with vampires. And… is destined to be with a wolf." Roisin looked to Paul at her side and then back at the goddess. "You have united peoples who otherwise would have not. To fight for what they believe is right. Some for freedom. All for peace. By standing here today, you have embraced who you truly are… a queen in your own right."

Roisin's mouth dropped open. A queen of her own right? She hadn't created her own court. Taken a crown. How did any of this happen? Clodaugh chuckled, obviously entertained by her confusion.

"No one shall tame you, but one has enhanced you," she looked towards Sean. "And another has captured your heart. Bound you to the land of the wolves, mortals and vampires." She looked at Paul. "Both have given you strength. And together you shall rule the sixth court - the Court of Dawn. For with this court, a new day has come for our kind. For all of our kinds." She looked around the field again before settling her gaze on Roisin. "You will bring balance and peace."

"But I'm not a queen," Roisin blurted out. Clodaugh smiled and in an instant she was in front of her.

"Yes… you are… you were the moment you embraced all of you," she said softly before kissing Roisin on the forehead.

It was then that she fully realized what had happened. What she had done. Just when she thought Rian had been about to kill Paul and Sean, she had let go. Stopped fighting her power. Allowed it to take over.

That was the moment she had become a queen.

But just as quickly, she remembered that Paul wasn't fae. Once the vampires left, he would stop shifting. Would age. And eventually die. She turned to look at him, finding he had shifted back and was now staring at Clodaugh in confusion.

"You saw me?" he asked. The goddess smiled and nodded. She glanced at Roisin.

"I saw you… together," she said. "That your souls would bind together."

"But… I'm not like you," he said, a small flash of pain in his eyes.

"And _that_ is why you need each other," she replied. "But I come bearing a gift… a way for you to never leave each other's side. For you to rule for all time."

Roisin's heart began pounding as she realized what she was saying. She was going to give him the fae's immortality. They could be together. Forever.

Paul's face was not so happy, though. It was contorted in pain. Why was this a bad thing? Didn't he want to be with her forever too?

"Can I… can I think on it?" he asked. Roisin was a bit gobsmacked. But Clodaugh smiled as though she expected this answer.

"It is no easy decision, this I understand. Yes, you need only call on me when you have made your decision," she said sagely. She then turned her eyes to Roisin. "But in the meantime… may I present… the Queen of Dawn, for you are no longer a child of Summer."

Roisin looked around the field, watching as one by one, all the solitary fae bowed to her, Cara grinning as she did so. She then looked over to her family. Her mother's eyes were full of happy tears as she too bowed, quickly followed by her father and brother. She looked back to her side, seeing Sean down on a knee, a grin on his face as his shadows danced around him in a lively jig. Her eyes then found Mae, who was bruised and bloody, but was also bowing, a small smile on her face.

Finally, Roisin turned, seeing Rian gaping at her. He then turned to the goddess, but suddenly seized a moment. Roisin took a step back, but finally, he too, took a knee.

"What about him?" she asked, turning back to Clodaugh.

"He shall be dealt with," the fae said, a smile on her face, but her voice cold. With a wave of her hand, all of the Winter fae disappeared. Okay, that was a neat trick Roisin wished to learn. "You no longer need to fear him. He cannot touch or harm you. Whatever deal was made is now null and void."

Roisin gulped and nodded, looking around again. The wolves and Cullens were all bowing as well, though she wasn't sure why. This was all… a bit too much. Too overwhelming. She wasn't sure what to do.

Suddenly, Clodaugh was right in front of her again.

"Do not doubt yourself. You are strong enough, my child. And you are not alone," she said, smiling warmly at her. Then suddenly, she was gone. Almost as though she had never been there at all.

"It's over," Roisin whispered.

A sudden, freeing feeling coursed through her. No more running. No more betrothal. No more worry about a prophecy that she hadn't understood.

Of course, now this meant the real work began. Setting up and then running a new court wouldn't be easy. But she knew she could do it. She had help after all. A delirious grin spread across her face as people began rising, mostly starting to look after the injured, but some starting to make their way towards her.

"Holy shit… it's over."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all, battle/fight scenes are hard to write. Super hard. I don't know why I keep coming up with stories that involve them – I really should write a story that doesn't have them at all, I think. While the ones in this story were a bit easier to write than the ones in "Siren's Call" (seriously, how on earth do you come up with a fight scene underwater? Still think I sucked on that one – watching clips from the TV show "Siren" didn't even help all that much…), I still struggled with it massively, especially as I was incorporating fae and wolf fighting styles and had to find a way for them to mesh together. But for me, it was super important to have Roisin, Sean and Paul fighting together – especially Roisin and Paul. However, I think this has been one of the most heavily edited chapters just because I'm still not so great at describing action/fighting as I'm not a fighter. In prior battle scenes in other stories, I spent hours on YouTube watching battle scenes and analyzing how people fought with swords and all, and there is plenty for me to watch for vampires and wolves, but it's not like there are a ton of YouTube videos on "fae fighting skills", so apologies if it's a bit… not good or vague. I did my best.
> 
> Lastly, despite that, the one thing that I had stuck in my head for AGES was the part where Roisin embraces her full powers and explodes into flames. I thought that would make a super cool visual and I only hope I did the image in my head justice.
> 
> Thanks everyone for reading and following! I'm on to finish edits on the next chapter and hope to get it up shortly!


	33. The Dawn of a New Time

Roisin reached out, grabbing onto Paul's arm to steady herself, her happy delirium overtaking her for a moment. She looked up into his eyes, smiling as he pulled her close.

"It's over," she said. "Holy shit. I'm a queen. Oh, fuck."

"It's going to be okay," he murmured, through there was a nervous hitch to his voice.

She looked around the field, not sure she was ready for the many conversations she was about to have. Especially as her parents and Darraugh were quickly making their way over to her.

"I guess this is the moment I get to meet your parents," Paul said, bringing her back down to earth. Seemed he was attempting to put a light spin on things.

Roisin looked up at him and nodded, unsure of what to say. They still needed to talk about what that was with Clodaugh, and while he looked relieved now, she could see the worry in his eyes. Could feel anxiety coursing through their connection, though she wasn't sure if it was because of her parents or because of the gift the goddess had offered. Whatever it was, there was no getting out of speaking to her parents at the moment. The rest they would have to deal with later.

Roisin turned and had just stepped away from Paul when Darraugh wrapped his arms around her in a fierce hug that nearly took her breath away. He then stepped back, taking her face into his hands.

"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked softly, agony in his eyes. "I could have helped you."

"I couldn't. I tried, but I couldn't," she whispered, reeling once again. Why were they here? How did he know?

"I'm your brother, Ro. I would have killed him myself," he said, suddenly appearing angry. Roisin shook her head, knowing he wasn't angry with her.

"How…"

"Mae and Cara. When Rian attacked they got to us. Begged us to come help. Told us everything," he said. Roisin frowned as she looked over, seeing Mae standing with Cara and Carlisle, looking uncomfortable though Cara was attempting to fight off the vampire doctor by loudly protesting she was fine and he should see after others.

She then looked over at her parents, both of them a bit ragged and looking slightly older than when she had left. She supposed they _had_ spent the last 100 years worrying about her. Wondering if she was safe. Though her mother was tall in her own right, her father towered over her, a slight grizzle on his face as the sun glinted off his sunburst locks. Roisin was the spitting image of her mother, everyone used to say, though Oonaugh's hair fell around her in a straight curtain. Roisin and Darraugh had both got their waves from their father, Cian.

"Oh, my sweet girl. Can you ever forgive us?" her mother asked, though she kept her distance. Her blue eyes were alight with tears that trekked down her cheeks in shimmery streams.

"I should have never made that agreement," her father added. "I see now how foolish it had been… Rian wouldn't have stopped fighting even if we had gone through with it. But knowing what I do now… I should have been protecting you. Not trying to force you to fulfill a prophecy in the way I had interpreted it."

Roisin felt a large lump form in her throat, unsure of what to say or do. She had always known that her parents had loved her. But when they had insisted on the marriage to Winter, refused to listen to her arguments, she had felt as though they turned their backs on her. That all they cared about was the court and keeping their power. She didn't think she could forgive them just yet - even if they hadn't known the full truth - but perhaps they could start to rebuild the once close relationship they had.

"It's… going to take me some time," she finally said, a diplomatic edge to her voice. "But we can work on it."

She glanced around at her three family members, seeing the smiles starting to form.

"Well then, let me be the first to offer an alliance to the Court of Dawn," Cian said loudly, his voice easily booming through the field like thunder in a summer storm. He held his hand out to her.

Roisin stared at it a moment before she stepped forward and hugged him, finding tears now filling her own eyes.

"And… who is this?" Oonaugh asked when Roisin stepped back, her sky blue eyes fixed on someone over Roisin's shoulder.

"Oh, um," Roisin said, turning to Paul, who was shifting uncomfortably on his feet, trying to cover himself. Ah. Right.

She quickly moved to step in front of him, providing a bit of cover. Even if she told him that nudity wasn't necessarily a big deal with the fae, she knew he'd be embarrassed regardless.

"This is Paul… my imprint," she said. "And my boyfriend."

"And apparently your king," Darraugh said, his eyes crinkling slightly in unspent laughter. Roisin's eyes widened slightly as she glanced at Paul over her shoulder.

"Uh… let's start with boyfriend first, maybe?" Paul said, smiling nervously at the Summer royals.

"Yes, that sounds good," Roisin quickly agreed. Her parents shared a look and then turned back to the couple. "Darraugh you've met. But this is my mother and father, King Cian and Queen Oonaugh of the Summer Court."

"Cian and Oonaugh are enough," her mother said graciously, a wide smile on her face. Oh bother. Roisin recognized that look. She was going to have wedding plans started before she left to return to Summer Court.

Shit.

"Are you the leader of the wolves?" Cian asked.

"Um, no, sir. I'm third-in-command of the Uley pack. Sam, over there, he's the alpha," Paul said, motioning over towards Sam with his head, who was thankfully walking over to them with a pair of shorts for Paul.

"And you," Oonaugh said, turning her eyes to Sean. "The former Shadow crown prince."

Through there was a slight coldness to her voice, her eyes held a bit of awe. Likely because she had seen how Sean had been fighting with Roisin. And well, Clodaugh had made it pretty damn clear she expected Sean to help with running the new court. But old prejudices died hard. They had lost almost as many fae fighting Shadow as they had Winter.

"Yes, though I left some 500 years ago. I didn't wish to rule a court like that," he said formally. He glanced at Roisin and winked, which only had her worried about what he was going to say next. "I met Roisin shortly after she ran away. Took in her and Mae to keep them both safe. Though it turns out Ro was the one keeping me safe. She fought and beat my brother so that he wouldn't kill me when I offered myself in exchange for Mae and a mortal friend of hers."

Roisin blushed slightly as both of her parents turned to gape at her, though Darraugh laughed softly.

"See? Those combat lessons did come handy," Darraugh said. Roisin rolled her eyes.

"Oh, so now you're going to take credit for that?" she asked, tilting her head to the side as he shrugged. It was almost surreal how easily they fell back into their old ways.

"No, wasn't intending to," he said lightly.

Roisin chuckled, finding the heaviness she had been carrying with her all these years starting to dissipate. It wasn't like it used to be… but it would some day. And she had missed the closeness she and Darraugh used to share.

"If I may, we do have a lot of injuries and casualties to see to," Sean said, interrupting the family reunion. "Both wolf and fae."

Roisin turned her eyes back to the field, her thoughts immediately turning to who could have been hurt or killed. In an instant, her light mood was gone as a deep sense of responsibility took over. These were her people now. Or well, if they chose to be. But regardless, they had fought for her today and she needed to take care of them.

"The packs are all alive. Some worse for the wear, but we heal quickly," Sam said quickly, trying to stem off some of her worry, she could tell. Roisin nodded and sighed.

"But still, I should look into everyone," she said, her expression serious. The group started to move back towards the house, but Roisin stayed put a moment, turning to Paul.

"If it's okay, I need to go see my dad," Paul said, before she could even open her mouth. Roisin's eyes widened slightly, but she nodded.

They really needed to talk, but that could wait. There were so many other things she had to take care of now.

"Of course. Just come back whenever you can," she said, smiling slightly at him. He nodded and stepped over, pulling her back into his arms as he kissed her forehead.

"I'll try not to be too long," he said before he let go of her and turned, running off into the woods.

Roisin stayed for a few moments longer, watching him go.

"He'll be back, Ro," Sean said softly. She turned to look at him, seeing a gentle look on his face. "Sure he's got a lot to figure out right now."

She nodded as they both started towards the house as well.

" _We've_ all got a lot to figure out right now…"

****

Paul didn't stop running until he reached the backyard of his father's house. And only then, he stopped long enough to pull his shorts back on before he strode into the house. He wasn't completely sure where his dad was at the moment - could only hope that the others had sent the humans far away when it became clear there was a fight going down. But he needed to be alone right now. To process.

Holy shit, Roisin was now queen of a new court. Which he had known would happen, but for some reason it hadn't set it that it would be this soon. And this goddess wanted him to help her run it. What the absolute hell was any of this? That he hadn't expected for some reason.

While he had thought perhaps bringing the fae, wolves and vampires together was part of the prophecy, he didn't actually think he had a real part in it. Okay, sure. He had helped bring them all together by imprinting on Roisin, but… that didn't mean he had to be some sort of leader, did it?

What's more, Clodaugh wanted to give him immortality. Did he want that? To live forever while everyone else that he loved and cared about would age and die? To watch them age and die? Yes, he would have Roisin and the other fae. But was that enough?

Paul stopped pacing and roughly ran his fingers through his hair, but then started pacing again, his agitation pushing him to keep moving. Or else he might punch something. Where did he even start unpacking all of this?

"Paul?"

He stopped pacing as he looked up to see his father walking in through the front door. In a second, he had crossed the room and wrapped his arms around him in a tight hug.

"Thank god. I heard that we won, but I wasn't sure how you were or if you were hurt," he said. "I went back to the house, but they said you went to look for me. Figured you'd be here."

"Where'd you go?" Paul asked, feeling guilty that he hadn't thought to look out for his father in the thick of it. All he could think about at the time was taking down Rian.

"Oh, they got us out of there quickly. Took us to Billy's while Bella took Nessie to their place, though I think Emily stayed behind with Sue to help with patching folks up afterwards," he said. "But I saw… I saw enough."

Paul stared into the wizened face of his father, seeing the relief in his eyes. But also the awe.

"You've got quite the imprint, Paul," he said, smiling slightly. Paul sighed and walked over, sitting on the couch. "What happened?"

"Well… we won. Obvious now," Paul started. "Then a goddess showed up. The one who gave the prophecy on Ro… and she gave her her own court. The Court of Dawn."

Ben Lahote whistled low as he walked over and sat in his recliner, leaning over to rest his elbows on his knees.

"That's pretty big. But it means you can stay, right?" he asked. Paul nodded.

"The court is here… in the mortal world. And it's not just fae, from what I understood… I think… She wants everyone - wolves, humans, vampires and such - to be part of it. If they want," he said, knowing that Roisin wouldn't force anyone to join her court. But she would protect everyone regardless. He then took a deep breath. "They want me to help her run it… as her… king, I guess…"

Ben chuckled.

"Thought that was obvious. You are imprints," he said matter-of-factly. Paul shot him a frown.

"But what if I… what if I can't do it?" he asked, his frustration building. He was trying to be serious here. He pushed up from the couch and started pacing again. "I've never done something like this before. I'm a screw-up. Barely graduated high school. How on earth can I help run some sort of supernatural court?"

"Hey, hey. It's okay to be afraid of this," Ben said, slowly standing. "No one thinks you should go barreling into it head first."

"I can't do this, Dad! I barely handled the responsibility Sam gave me with the packs. And… no one thinks I can do this," Paul continued.

"Paul… that's not true," Ben snapped. Paul looked over, locking eyes with his father. "I think you can do it. And Sam. He wouldn't have named you third-in-command if he didn't think you could."

"But-"

"And I'm sure that Roisin thinks you can," Ben continued, cutting him off. "Yes, you were a bit rough around the edges when you were younger. Made some mistakes. But we all do. And even then, I knew that you could do better. That you would be something great someday."

Paul just stared at his father, his mouth falling open slightly, even though Ben had told him this much many times before. He ran his fingers through his hair again.

" _I_ don't know if I can do this," he finally said, looking over at his father. "And they want… the goddess offered me immortality. So I could always stay with Ro…"

Ben's eyes widened slightly in surprise.

"Well, that doesn't sound so bad," he replied. Paul groaned.

"Don't you get it? I'll have to watch everyone I know and care about die! I'll live forever while you all grow old and…" Paul said. He motioned wildly with his hands, unable to finish the sentence.

"But you'll be with your imprint - with Ro - forever," Ben said, pain briefly coming over his face. "What I would give to spend forever with your mother…"

Paul didn't speak. While they talked about his mother here and there and Paul knew his parents had been deeply in love, it wasn't often his father spoke about the pain of losing her.

"And well, kid, you were going to have to watch me die someday regardless. That's just life," Ben continued. "But this… this is a chance not everyone gets. To make something of yourself, to build something great, and to do it with the person you love. Not to mention, Ro… she's going to need you."

Paul frowned. He was of the opinion Roisin didn't really need him to do this. She was strong enough on her own. And she had Sean to help. But at the same time, he couldn't help but imagine spending forever at her side. Never dying or getting sick. The two of them creating a whole new world together. Building up a new court.

And that he would love her from now until the end of time.

Paul staggered back slightly at the implications of that.

"Look, I get that you're scared. I'd be worried if you weren't, but you don't have to be," Ben said softly. "You belong together. And you need each other."

"I need you too," Paul said, still frowning.

"And you'll have me until the day I die. That's kind of what fathers do, Paul," Ben said, smiling. "Something you'll learn someday."

Paul swallowed. He was still coming around to the idea of being with Roisin forever and all that. He hadn't even thought of kids yet. That was another can of worms for another day. He then took a deep breath and slowly let it out.

"I… I need to think about this a bit more," he said softly. Ben nodded.

"It's a big decision. Take your time. I have a feeling Roisin'll wait, but… don't let your fear dictate your decision. And don't let any worry for me or the others get in the way. We all support you, no matter what you decide. And we like Ro. She's one of us now," Ben said.

Paul nodded and turned, starting towards the back door. He then stopped and went back to his father, hugging him.

"Thanks, Dad."

****

Roisin was exhausted. She thought she could sleep after everything that happened, but it was now getting pretty late and even though the rest of the house was quiet, she couldn't bring herself to settle down.

It didn't help that Paul still wasn't back. She knew she wouldn't be able to sleep until they talked.

The hours after the battle had been a blur. The first order of business was making sure that everyone was taken care of. They had lost three - Niamh and two others that they had got to join them. But then more fae showed up, somehow hearing about everything - goddess, fae were such gossips sometimes - all of them eager to join the new court.

Then Jacob and Sam had pulled her aside, saying they wanted to talk in the coming days about how they could integrate the packs and the court. Both wanted to keep a level of independence, which Roisin could understand, but still wanted to form some sort of alliance. However, that would entail a meeting with the tribal elders. They would get back to her tomorrow with a day and time.

After that, Carlisle had come up to her and said that his family wished to continue working with her and the court as well. They were set to leave for a time when Nessie got older, but they always came back to Forks.

She then sat down with her family, the four of them going over everything and reconnecting. It was difficult at times, but Roisin found herself actually eager to try and mend things. And it seemed her parents and brother were as well.

Finally, after all of that, Roisin finally got some time to herself.

She walked over and sat on the end of her bed, her thoughts finally able to turn towards Paul and what all of this meant for their future. While they had both wanted to find a way to get out of her betrothal - a way for her to stop running and stay in Forks - she hadn't expected it would be like this. And she hadn't expected he would hesitate, though now that she thought about it, it made sense. She had been running from her destiny, after all. From becoming queen and ruling. But now that it was here, she had quickly accepted it. Stepped into the role that she had been meant to take all along.

But she really wanted him to be at her side. It was going to be difficult and she knew that Clodaugh was right. She would need Paul in this. And Sean. At least she didn't have to worry about that. He had already pledged his allegiance to the Court of Dawn in whatever capacity she wanted him in. Roisin was still trying to figure that out as well, but at the very least, he would be an advisor. He and Cara, who had joined as well. In fact, Roisin was pretty sure the next few weeks were going to be a long line of fae showing up to pledge to her court if today was anything to go by. And then it was likely that Autumn and Spring would be in touch to form alliances. Though she would still have to deal with Winter and Shadow - whatever that meant.

Roisin groaned, leaning over to rub her temples. At this rate, she'd never get to sleep tonight.

A knock at her door had her putting aside those worries for the time being as she looked up, her heart skipping a beat. Paul was back. Had to be.

"Come in," she called out, rising to her feet.

But rather than Paul, a nervous Mae stepped in, unsure if she should move any closer. While she had cleaned up, there were still visible cuts and bruises painting her skin. She quickly dropped into a bow.

"You don't have to do that. You never did it when we were at Summer Court," Roisin said, her heart seizing. She still hadn't processed Mae's betrayal.

"You're a queen now. It's different," Mae said, straightening, but not looking up from the ground as she fiddled with the hem of her shirt. She then glanced up at Roisin. "I… I'm sorry. I know it doesn't mean much, but I am. I wouldn't… I shouldn't have gone to Rian. Or Shadow before that... I didn't mean to… I didn't know…"

Roisin studied her a moment and then sat back down, her brow furrowed.

"Well, that's not completely your fault. I didn't tell you," she said.

"You told Sean. Paul," Mae said, hurt creeping into her voice, though she still looked ashamed. "Why couldn't you tell me?"

"I…" Roisin stopped, thinking over why. Now that it was all over with - everything in the open - she wondered just why she hadn't trusted her so-called best friend with what Rian had done to her. "At the time, I wasn't strong enough." Mae looked up at her, surprised. "I wanted to forget that it happened. To get as far away from Rian and Summer Court as I could. Sean - it took him years to get the full story out of me. And I suppose he told Cara, which isn't a surprise. And Paul… that was the imprint. And the fact that he was here when Darraugh found me. Otherwise, I don't know if I would have told him everything… No… I would have. Eventually."

"I would have stood by you, you know. And I would have done everything to make sure he never found you," Mae vowed.

"I know," Roisin whispered. "I didn't want to burden you with my pain."

Mae stared at her a moment and then chuckled softly.

"You're always trying to look out for me," she said. "You know you can let me look out for you sometimes." Roisin raised her eyebrows.

"Yea, isn't that what you were trying to do that got us into this whole mess?" she asked. Mae's cheeks flushed.

"I deserve that, but… actually no. Even without knowing, I should have done things differently," she said, now looking at the floor again. "I just… I understand if you hate me and never want to forgive me, but I just want you to know that I love you and still think of you as my best friend. And I support you. This. Staying here."

Roisin was silent a few moments before she stood and walked over to Mae. She pulled her in for a hug, shocking Mae.

"It's going to take some time to trust you fully again, but… you're still my best friend. And it's up to you. You can stay here or go back to Summer Court. I won't stop you," she said gently.

"You're not going to kick me out of your life?" Mae asked in shock. Roisin smiled and shook her head.

"I don't think I could, truthfully. You've been part of it for a very long time," she replied. Mae smiled in relief and stepped back from her.

"I haven't decided what to do yet, but I'll let you know," she said.

"Okay."

Mae smiled at Roisin and then turned, leaving the room and shutting the door behind her. Sighing, she walked over and pulled open the curtains, staring out into the night, her thoughts yet again turning to Paul. Wondering where he was. When he would come back. She felt restless without him. Unsure.

It was then that she saw a figure walking towards the house. Stepping closer to the windows, her heartbeat faltered a bit before speeding up as she recognized who it was. Smiling, she walked over to the door and threw it open. In an instant, she was in front of Paul, throwing her arms around him.

He chuckled softly as he held her close, both of them calmer just being together. Roisin then stepped back and looked up into his eyes, finding him more settled than earlier.

"I wasn't sure when you'd come back," she said.

"I wasn't going to be away that long," he replied, smiling slightly. "Imprint, remember?"

"Right," she said. "Look about earlier…"

"Yea, that was… a lot to take in at once," Paul said. He then tightened his grip on her waist. "But… I think I've made a decision." Roisin's eyes widened as her heart raced. "I still don't think I'm ready for… all of this. But I know that I want to be with you. And we _are_ better together. And if I'm doing this with you… I'll figure it out eventually. I mean… we need each other."

"We do. I really need you, Paul," Roisin whispered. "And… I don't really know what I'm doing either. So we'll be learning together." Paul chuckled.

"Yea, gonna need a long learning process," he said wryly.

"You can do it, you know. Rule with me. We're in this together. You and me," Roisin said firmly. "Always."

"Helps that we have Sean and Cara too," Paul said. Roisin grinned as she stepped back from him, finally feeling all her nerves and anxiety fade away.

"So… are you saying that you'll stay with me? Rule with me?" she asked. Paul laughed and nodded.

"Even though part of me thinks this Clodaugh has it wrong, yes. I'll stay with you. Always," he vowed. "But… could we maybe wait a bit before we do all the… wedding and… other stuff?"

Roisin found herself laughing as she planted a kiss on his lips.

"Yes. There is definitely no reason to rush into that," she said.

"You will have eternity, after all."

Both of them jumped, turning to see Clodaugh standing next to them, smiling serenely.

"And as I said, _I_ did not decide anything. I merely saw what would happen. _You_ made the decision to accept your destiny," she said.

"Some warning would have been nice," Paul muttered, causing the ancient fae to chuckle. "I guess this means you're here to… do the thing?"

"Yes, as you so aptly put it," she replied. Paul looked down at Roisin, who was smiling up at him as she stepped back a bit. Paul took a deep breath and turned to Clodaugh.

"Okay. I'm ready," he said. "Or, wait… I'm… will I have wings?" Clodaugh chuckled softly.

"No," she said. "You will always stay as you are. You will be impervious to age, illness. You will be both fae and wolf, though even I will admit that I am most eager to see how it affects you fully. We have never gifted one such as yourself with our power."

Paul took a deep breath and nodded, closing his eyes. Clodaugh walked over to him, gently taking his face into her hands and kissing his forehead. She then stepped back as they waited and watched.

Roisin looked on with wide eyes, watching as Paul began to glow slightly. When he opened his eyes and looked at her, she could see the flames dancing in them. He smiled and she could see the rays of the sun in it. He had always been beautiful to her. But now… he was so much more.

"I wish you both the best. Rule well. Rule wisely," Clodaugh said before silently disappearing.

"Really wish we could do that," Paul said, looking back over where she had stood a moment before turning to Roisin. "So… how do I look?"

She grinned as she walked over and slid her arms around his neck.

"Perfect," she murmured as her lips met his.

As Paul kissed her back, she could feel his love flowing over her like sunbeams. Her love for him coursing through her like fire. Without breaking the kiss, he reached down and easily picked her up in his arms, making his way back to her room. He then broke the kiss, staring deep into her eyes.

"I guess forever starts today, huh," he said. Roisin grinned and nodded.

"I guess so…"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I couldn't help myself. When the opportunity came up to have an awkward meeting-the-parents moment, I couldn't resist. Though originally, they were there to confront Roisin with Rian, but then that made no sense as Darraugh had promised a month, so I changed it to what it is.
> 
> I felt it was fitting to have Paul struggle a bit rather than accept everything outright. Yes, he had decided to go with Ro, but at the same time, there hadn't really been much time for him to process fully what being with her would mean. And while I'm of the mind that I would jump wholeheartedly into being immortal (god, imagine all the things you could do with an infinite amount of time – all the books you could read or write, the experiences you could have, the places you could go and see) at the same time, I think it wouldn't be a completely easy decision. I've lived through losing family that I was super close with before I should have, and the thought of having to go through that with EVERYONE that I know and care about, it would be a bit daunting. Not to mention, I had Paul struggling with finding purpose, with feeling as though he wasn't good enough, from the beginning. So, his doubts about himself are very valid and realistic. And it's different from Ro. She's been running from it, but she's known all along that this was something that could happen. So, when it did, she was already at a point where she could accept it. Just took Paul a good chat with his dad to realize that yea, he doesn't really know how things are going to go down, but he loves Ro and she seems to believe in him as do others, so maybe he can do it.
> 
> Not to mention, I think this story needed some sort of resolution with Ro's family and Mae. Yea, it's not completely resolved, but we're on a good start.
> 
> After this, I have a bonus steamy chapter going up on AO3 (username rubberduckz84 – same title on the story) if you want to pop over to read it. If not, you won't lose anything from the story.
> 
> Thanks for reading and following! One more chapter to go!


	34. Bonus Chapter - The Joining of Two Worlds

It felt like in the blink of an eye, they were back in Roisin’s bedroom and Paul was gently placing her on her feet. Yea, he was going to enjoy this. Getting around everywhere so fast without needing to shift. He ran his hands up and down Roisin’s arms before he looked down at them, his eyes widening slightly as he raised them up to his face, a bit transfixed by the slightly sheen around them. Almost as though a glowing mist was swirling around him.

Roisin laughed softly and he met her eyes again, smiling in return as he pulled her to him, kissing her passionately. He could feel something swirling inside him - something more than pure desire for Roisin, that is. It was strong and warm, and while a bit disorienting, he was quickly adapting to it. 

While he was long used to his own high body temperature and had adapted to Roisin’s, there was something about the way they seemed to combine that had him struggling to keep somewhat in control of himself. He reached around her back, grabbing at her shirt and then easily ripping it off as though it was made of paper. He stepped back, surprised with himself as he hadn’t intended to do that.

“Yea, you’ll adjust to the new strength,” Roisin said, gaining his attention again. “But maybe try not to rip all my clothes? They can get expensive to replace.”

She then stepped up to him, lightly running her fingers up and down his chest that had him shivering even though they left behind trails of heat across his skin. He yanked her closer to him a bit more roughly than intended, but she only chuckled in return, reassuring him that he hadn’t hurt her. Before they could move things further, she pushed him back, reaching down to undo the buttons on her jeans before slowly sliding them down. That was probably a good idea, he thought, considering he had just destroyed her shirt.

Still smirking, her eyes drifted down to his shorts and then back up to him, as she reached behind her to undo her bra. Right. He was still wearing clothes. The rush of everything seemed to have made Paul’s brain stop working for a moment. In a near instant he was kicking the shorts aside as Roisin tossed her bra and was walking towards the bed, glancing over her shoulder at him before bending over and slowly removing her panties.

Paul felt himself twitch with want and need, then suddenly he was behind her, feathering heated kisses down her bare shoulder as his fingers splayed out over her midsection. Roisin gasped softly, her head falling back against him with her eyes half closed. Everywhere their bodies touched seemed to burn, though not in a painful way. God, if he had thought being with Ro before was good before, this was absolutely next level. 

Roisin turned in his arms and met his lips in a fiery kiss that felt like fireworks going off as she pulled him along, the two of them moving towards the bed. Though rather than lay back on it, she turned them. As the kiss continued, she pushed him until he was lying on his back and she was straddling him.

“Ro,” he breathed, nearly overwhelmed by the feeling of her lips against his skin as his fingers ran through her hair. The temperature in the room was rising exponentially, but he barely noticed. 

She laughed softly, sending a whole new round of sensations coursing through him that had his hips rising, desperate for any and all contact.

“Patience,” Roisin murmured against his skin as she continued slowly kissing down his chest. He looked down at her and nearly chuckled, knowing what she was doing. It was the same thing he had done to her the first time they made love.

She only winked at him before continuing, lavishing long, drawn-out kisses until she was perched on his legs and her fingers firmly wrapped around him, causing him to yet again thrust, relishing the friction. She stroked him a few times and he looked down, seeing her lick her lips before she lowered her head. Just as her tongue made contact with his member, his eyes rolled back into his head as he moaned. 

He then felt her warm mouth surrounding him, slowly taking in as much as she could before sucking as she pulled back up. Had head always felt this good? He couldn’t remember. At the moment, he was near delirious with everything.

Roisin continued at a slow pace, though started to gradually pick up. Paul was beginning to think that if it felt this good, would his body combust as soon as he was inside her? God, being fae was incredible.

“Ro…” he rasped. “Stop… stop…”

He looked down at her, his chest rising and falling quickly as she stopped and looked at him in concern. Before she could say anything, he pulled her up and then flipped her over, kissing her deeply. She reciprocated quickly, wrapping her arms around him and pulling him closer. 

He knew he couldn’t take it much longer, reaching down between them and guiding his head to her entrance. With one, powerful thrust, he entered her, both of them moaning loudly. For a moment, Paul froze, squeezing his eyes shut.

“Is… is everything okay?” Roisin breathed. He opened his eyes and grinned down at her before kissing her gently.

“Better than okay…”

****

As soon as his lips met hers again in a hungry kiss, Paul began moving, thrusting in and out at a steady, albeit slow pace. Roisin’s body reacted all on its own, her legs wrapping around him as she encouraged him to go as deep as he could. With each thrust in, her body arched up to meet his, wanting more.

She could feel the power just coursing under his skin, the new strength in his muscles as they contracted. But she wasn’t worried. Even if he was still getting used to his fae strength, she knew Paul would never hurt her. Even accidentally. 

The ability to properly speak seemed to completely leave her, the only thing coming from her lips soft moans that were growing slightly louder as Paul gradually began to increase his pace. 

Her body felt overheated, as did his, sweat now coating them. Opening her eyes, she looked up into his, once again seeing fire dancing there as faint wisps of flames began to ghost across his skin. She reached up, brushing her fingers against his cheek, transfixed by it. She then met his gaze as he claimed her lips again, moving faster and harder inside her.

She could feel it building inside her. It had started slow, but now it felt almost as though she was running full tilt towards the edge as she felt his fingers exactly where she wanted them, massaging a quick, but firm pattern into her most sensitive spot that had her repeating his name like a mantra against his lips. 

The flames grew quickly and spread, covering both of them as she felt the familiar pressure began to settle in her abdomen. But this time, she knew it wasn’t her. This was all Paul. She tightened her legs around him, shifting around a bit until every thrust in hit her at exactly the right spot, the feeling causing stars to appear behind her eyelids.

“Oh, fuck… Paul,” she moaned loudly, breaking away from his lips. He didn’t respond, now pounding into her hard. 

She opened her eyes and found him watching her, a smile on his face. 

“So… close…” he panted. Roisin could only nod as she attempted to keep up with his pace, which was increasing rapidly. 

The pressure was building so fast that her brain couldn’t keep up, her back arching off the bed as she struggled to maintain her breathing. Then suddenly, something burst inside her that had her stricken for a moment, a blazing inferno surrounding them as her mouth fell open in a silent scream and her fingers dug into his skin. With a roar, Paul gave one more powerful thrust and then groaned loudly, his entire body tensing. For a moment, all she could focus on was the large wave of pleasure that was coursing through her body and the weight of Paul on top of her. The pulsing of him inside her. 

After a few moments, he collapsed next to her on the bed, though immediately pulled her back into his arms. Flames continued to dance lightly across his skin and once again, she reached out, her fingers twirling through them.

“Okay… I really… if that’s what it’s like from now on… we’re going to have a hard time ruling this court,” Paul panted. Roisin looked up at him, still a bit too keyed up to speak, though she raised an eyebrow at him. Paul smirked as he gently kissed her. “I don’t think I’ll be able to leave this bed as long as you’re in it…”

Roisin chuckled and took a deep breath.

“We’ll have to eventually,” she finally replied, gently caressing his cheek. “Got a lot more responsibility now…”

“Yea… but we can worry about that tomorrow,” Paul said, kissing her again, though this one was a bit more passionate. He then pulled back quickly, glancing down and then back up at her, a questioning look on his face. “Seriously?”

Roisin chuckled as she pressed a kiss against his lips.

“Yea, seriously,” she said. He smiled and began kissing her again, rolling on top of her. After a few moments, he pulled back from her.

“I love you, Ro. Always,” he whispered. Roisin grinned. 

She had never once seriously considered that she might find one person that she was willing to spend the rest of her immortal life with. And even though there were many,  _ many _ things they had to figure out - and she was nowhere close to wanting to make things more official than they already were - she knew without a doubt that Paul was her person. 

“I love you too,” she breathed. “Always.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here is the second steamy chapter. Gotta love fae-wolf Paul...


	35. The Break of Dawn

Paul chuckled as he watched Seth and some of the others in the pack roughhouse in the new pool in the backyard with various fae of the court, all of them enjoying the warmth and sunshine. (There were always a good amount of fae just milling around the house when they weren't off doing whatever it was fae did - granted they all had strict orders to never harm any humans in the area.) Even though it was nearly summer in Forks, ever since the Court of Dawn was formed, the weather around the house was always warm and sunny, no matter what it was doing elsewhere. Roisin and Sean had explained that it was now considered fae land, meaning they could more fully control the weather, though apparently Roisin had been able to affect it to a slight extent just after moving to Forks. Now that she was queen of her own court, her power in that regard had grown exponentially. And well, Paul's, apparently. They were still figuring out everything he could do, but as he was not just fae, but royal fae, he was more powerful than most in the court. Equal to only Roisin and Sean. Truthfully, he was still wrapping his head around that.

It still shocked him a bit when either he or Roisin got upset or extremely emotional and it occasionally started up a storm or heatwave. Or they set something on fire by accident.

Of course, this also meant they had to take more precautions to make sure that unsuspecting humans didn't find their way there or notice anything off. Which had been an interesting experience for Paul, being new to all of this and how to use fae magic. The McLaren property was rather vast, allowing them privacy and room for all the fae that had joined in the months since the showdown with Rian. But that also meant it took a lot of power for them to keep it hidden and safe.

It was hard to believe how much had changed in such a short time. The court was strong, though not massive. Roisin wasn't sure they could handle a huge amount of fae joining all at once, but they were already working on buying up more land in order to expand their borders if necessary. And well, apparently fae magic helped with that as well. Paul still didn't understand a lot of it, but he was learning fast. And he was a bit in awe of how they could hide everything from the people in Forks and La Push, though everyone connected to the packs were fully aware of their presence. As well as a few select others.

Roisin wanted to build good relations with the nearby mortals. As such, she had told Tara, Megan and Trey the truth. The three were rather shocked at first, but then seemed to accept it wholeheartedly and were often visitors. To be honest, Paul was surprised she had even let Charlie Swan in on the big secret, who took the news much like he had taken Jacob when he told him about the wolves - though this time it didn't involve anyone stripping down. He then asked if there was a need-to-know aspect, which had confused Roisin. She nearly told him about the vampires, though thankfully Paul had stopped her in time, reminding her later that their rules were still rather strict when it came to humans knowing.

But despite things still constantly changing, they had begun settling into their new roles. Paul found he liked being fae. Or well - whatever he was. He had their speed and immortality. Their ability to mask himself and go unseen. Had his own brand of fae magic. But he was still very much a wolf, able to shift whenever, even if there were no vampires around. And still keeping all the attributes he had before. At least he had Roisin to help. And Sean, who he now saw as a close friend.

Roisin had named Paul co-regent with her while Sean was their head advisor, though held a bit more say and power than most advisors usually did. Cara was the head of the guard, quickly putting together fae to protect their borders and train them. She was well suited for the role, Paul thought. Mae hadn't settled here, but came by often, as did Roisin's brother as emissary for the Summer Court, who Paul was slowly starting to come around to, though he could do without the Summer prince's constant need to play tricks.

The packs had entered a formal alliance with the court - being part of it, yet maintaining their autonomy - as had the Cullens. As such, the court offered their protection and vice versa. It was all rather easy and quick to set up as far as alliances went.

"So… King Paul… kinda has a ring to it," Jared said as he sat in the chair next to him. Paul rolled his eyes.

"Yea, no," he said. "No one calls me king. Or Ro queen. We don't like titles."

"Thank god you don't make us bow to you," Jared said with a snort. Paul just huffed and shifted in his chair, slightly uncomfortable. He still wasn't used to being any sort of ruler. Though Roisin seemed to take to it naturally. "But really… you seem to have settled into it."

"It's been trial by fire. Literally, in some cases," Paul said with a small chuckle. "But yea… I think we're doing okay."

"Where is Ro?" Jared asked, looking around the yard.

"Checking with Sean on some things. We've got Autumn and Spring coming soon for alliance talks," he said, taking a sip of his drink. "Lots of preparations with that."

"Any reason you're not there?" Jared asked.

"Because I'm efficient. Already finished up my part," Paul replied with a shrug. "We're taking them to meet with the tribe elders while they're here, so got that arranged. And Cara's already briefed me on the guards. So we're good there. They're mostly talking logistics at the moment, which Roisin and I already discussed last night."

"You really are good at this," Jared said, his eyes wide. Paul chuckled as he shook his head.

"If you told me a few months ago that this would be my life, I would have never believed you," he said. "But it's been good…"

"You still thinking about trying school?" Jared then asked.

"Looking at some options. Thought it might be good to take some courses in politics," Paul replied. "Though I don't want to be too far from the court and Ro. So for now, thinking I'll stick with online courses. And well, Ro and Sean both grew up as royal fae, so they offer much better education than a university could in that sense." He looked over, seeing Jared grinning at him. "What's that for?"

"Just… it's good to see you doing so well," Jared replied. Paul rolled his eyes again.

But then he felt his happiness spike. He looked over, watching as Roisin walked up to him, then made herself at home on his lap.

"How'd the meeting go?" he asked after pecking her on the lips.

"Good. We're ready," she said. "They should be here tomorrow. We'll do a party to welcome them tomorrow night, though thankfully they aren't bringing a huge entourage. I mean, we have lots of room, but we don't live in a castle like the other courts."

"Might need to add on," Paul said, his gaze turning towards the large, manor-like house and then out to the clearing behind it. "We could add a guest house for special guests or something…" Roisin's laughter brought his attention back to her. "What?"

"And you were worried you wouldn't be good at this," she replied, smirking at him.

"Really don't see how adding a guest house makes me a good ruler," he said, his brow furrowed, though he couldn't help but smile in return. Roisin shrugged.

"Trust me… you're doing just fine," she said.

"So… since we're invited to this party, anything we need to know?" Jared asked, leaning towards them.

"Well, compared to Winter and Shadow, and even Summer, they are way more mellow. Autumn is very rational and calm, though Spring… they're always so happy," Roisin said. "And really, they just want to be left alone in peace. They've had alliances with Summer for a really long time now. As Summer was stronger, it was a good move in case Winter or Shadow launched any attacks on them."

"Any word on that?" Jared asked, becoming a bit more serious. Paul looked at Roisin, finding a slightly worried look on her face, though it quickly disappeared.

"Winter is keeping to itself for the most part, though Darraugh said Summer finalized a peace accord," Roisin said. "Rian hasn't reached out to us yet, though I don't expect to hear from him for a bit."

"Still licking his wounds, eh?" Jared asked, smiling slightly.

"Hopefully. It's either that or he's plotting," Roisin said.

"That would be a big mistake. I saw how you handled him," Jared said. Roisin smiled slightly.

"I don't think he'll attempt messing with us anytime soon, but it's something to keep in mind. He is rather patient. And not someone to write off completely," Roisin said. "As for Shadow, Cathal has expressed an interest in discussing things. But we're approaching it carefully."

"While I'd rather not make any agreements with him, it's probably better than nothing," Paul said with a sigh.

"See? You _are_ good at this," Roisin said, now grinning at him. Paul chuckled.

"Yea, let's wait and see how things go tomorrow before you start saying that again. I might commit some massive fae faux pas," he replied lightly.

"You won't," Roisin said before kissing him.

"Get a room!" Seth shouted from the pool. Paul turned to glare at him, but Roisin just laughed.

"Get an imprint!" she retorted playfully.

"Touche," Jared said with a chuckle as Paul just smiled at Roisin.

Yes, this was all working out, he thought. Not how he expected, but it was.

****

Roisin stood in front of her mirror, taking in the dress from all sides as she frowned slightly. Maybe she should have worn something else. She still had time to change, now that she thought about it. Paul walked up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing the side of her head.

"You look beautiful. Stop fussing," he said.

"But… we need to make a good impression," she said, her brow furrowed. "We are a new court, after all."

"Look. Introductions went well. Tonight is about relaxing and having a bit of fun before we launch into negotiations," he replied. Roisin turned in his arms, now smiling up at him.

"And here you were worried that you wouldn't take to this life all that well," she said, flipping the conversation. Paul rolled his eyes as he chuckled.

"I've had some good teachers," he said before pecking her on the lips. "Come on. We should get out there before someone thinks we're up to no good in here."

He winked at her as he let go and started towards the door.

For a moment, Roisin stood and watched him, still in awe at seeing him in his new form. As the - for lack of a better word - King of the Court of Dawn, it was as though he held the sun inside him, much like she always had. And though he didn't have wings like she did, there was still an otherworldliness about him. He had her fire as well. Figuratively and literally, though at times he still lost a bit of control of it. Granted, even Roisin was still learning to control hers.

She then shook her head and followed him as he opened the door and they stepped out into the large living room. There were already a fair amount of fae there, though more would arrive. And the packs would be here soon. She had even invited the Cullens, wanting to show Autumn and Spring their full court. She thought about inviting Tara, Megan and Trey, but decided against it. Even though the two courts were unlikely to mess with mortals, it was probably for the best to not have any here just in case.

"Our hosts have arrived."

Paul and Roisin stopped, turning to face the Autumn queen Nuala and her head advisor Liam. Both had glasses of fae wine in hand. Nuala had dark skin, her warm eyes the color of amber as her wild dark hair was a tangle of vines and berries. The same such vines glided around her arms and torsos as wings the color of fall leaves fluttered behind her.

"Again, we're happy to host you," Roisin said warmly as Nuala smiled smoothly. Roisin had always liked the Autumn queen, finding her friendly, though measured. Very practical, which Roisin liked even though as a born Summer fae, she was still slightly impulsive.

"As I said, since we received word of a new court, we were most eager to meet with you," she replied. "I have yet to hear of our kin joining with others."

Her eyes drifted over to Paul, who was still a bit of an enigma among the fae.

"Well, you'll get to meet the others tonight," Paul said, his arm sliding around Roisin's waist, speaking like a practiced royal, though it still made Roisin's stomach flutter a bit. "Should be here soon."

"I am most eager to meet these wolves. We have never heard of their kind, though we have heard of werewolves," Liam said, his skin the smooth texture and color of a birch tree while his hair was a brilliant gold.

"Well, they most definitely grow on you," Roisin said, glancing up at Paul with a smile.

They continued on making small talk with Nuala and Liam for a bit longer as more fae and then the packs and Cullens finally arrived. Roisin had finally gotten away into the kitchen for a bit of a breather and to refill her glass, leaving Paul with the Spring king and queen - Lilac and Conor.

"You sure it's a good idea to leave him alone."

Roisin jumped slightly and then turned, seeing Sean leaning against the island, casually sipping his wine as he smirked at her. Roisin rolled her eyes and walked over to him.

"Dude, he's fine. You even said he was doing really good this morning when the others arrived," she said, punching him lightly in the arm. Sean chuckled.

"True. He really was meant for this," he said. "Perhaps Fate knows what she's doing." Roisin just rolled her eyes and leaned against the island next to him. "And this beats being on the run by a longshot."

"What, finally giving up your wandering ways?" Roisin asked, an eyebrow raised at him. Sean just shrugged.

"It's not so bad. Even if I'm forced to your constant displays of affection," he remarked. Roisin just stared at him. "Okay, it's better than that. I'm happy. Content. At least I'm finally in a court that cares."

Roisin cracked a smile and then kissed his cheek.

"I should have listened to you more," she said.

"And finally, you admit that I was right," Sean said with a dramatic sigh, though his eyes were twinkling.

"Yea, don't let it get to your head too much," she said, starting towards the archway. Sean just snorted in response.

"HOLY SHIT! FINALLY!"

Roisin froze a moment. But then, in a second, she and Sean were in the living room, surveying every guest. Her eyes then fell on Embry, who was grinning like an idiot, and a very confused fae just in front of him. It took a moment, but Roisin recognized her as one of Spring's entourage - her blue wings that looked as though they were the petals of a flower spread behind her in surprise and her light brown hair up in curls. Everything about her screamed delicate, from her rosy cheeks to her pursed, pink lips and her fair skin. She was the assistant to the queen. What was her name again? Ah, yes. Iris.

"What's going on?" Sean asked, nervously looking over at the Spring monarchs, who were watching on in concern, though Paul seemed to be talking to them in hushed tones.

It took less than a second for Roisin to realize what was happening as Embry nervously tried talking to the fae. Roisin grinned and started cackling.

" _That_ was Embry imprinting," Roisin said, glancing at Sean.

"What? Seriously?" Sean asked, looking utterly confused for a moment before looking back at the pair. Iris was now smiling shyly as she stepped closer to Embry, who looked like he had just won a million bucks.

Well, Roisin supposed to him, he probably just had.

"I guess this will make talks with Spring easier," Sean said, smiling. "Think we can get someone to imprint on Autumn?" Roisin snorted.

"Doesn't happen like that. And well, the rest of the ones who haven't imprinted yet are only 16," Roisin replied, glancing at him. Sean just shrugged.

"Well, it was a good idea," he said as the party picked up again, everyone seemingly moving past Embry's outburst.

He was now dancing with Iris, the fae giggling shyly, though Roisin had her guess that would only last so long. Spring fae were typically only shy for the first five minutes before opening up and becoming bubbling founts of giggles and happiness. Embry definitely had a fitting imprint in that regard.

"Well, I suppose that makes up for me and Jared," Paul said, suddenly behind Roisin, his arms around her waist. She glanced up at him, her eyebrows raised. "Embry and Kim were dating when Jared imprinted on her. And well, you and Embry had your thing before I imprinted on you."

Roisin chuckled and looked back at the couple, who were now staring deep into each other's eyes.

"Not sure I would call it a thing," she said.

"Oh, trust me. The way he talked about it, it was a _thing_. I wanted to punch him a few times after we imprinted because of it," Paul admitted. Roisin looked up at him in dismay. "But I didn't."

"Good," she said, turning away. The two watched a few moments.

"Oh, god. He's going to be a sappy mess, isn't he?" Paul groaned.

"Shut up. Can't you be happy for him?" Roisin said, smacking his hand playfully. "Though, this is a bit of a curious mess. She's Lilac's personal assistant."

"You think she'll want to take Embry with her back to Spring Court?" Paul asked. Roisin shrugged.

"Or she might want to stay here. I mean, there's plenty of room for the both of them if they want to get a nice little cottage in our court," she said.

"They've imprinted all but five minutes ago and you're already offering them a house?" Paul asked. "Sheesh, let them get to know each other a bit first."

Roisin chuckled as she started to walk towards the verandah, where more fae were dancing, dragging Paul with her. He didn't protest and soon she was staring into his eyes as they moved slowly with a soft song that had come on.

"This is vastly different from the night we first met," Paul said, though his eyes flashed slightly and Roisin couldn't help but shiver at the memory.

Yea, they definitely had a pretty intense imprint - in more ways than one.

"Probably a good thing. We can't go running off to our bedroom in the middle of the welcome party for Spring and Summer," she said. Paul raised his eyebrows. "It's only polite to wait a couple hours until everyone is drunk on fae wine and the orgy has started."

Paul's eyes widened a moment before they narrowed and a smile appeared.

"Haha, very funny, Ro," he said dryly as he bent down and kissed her lightly. But instead of pulling away, he moved until his lips were next to her ear. "Do not tempt me right now. You know what happens when I can't keep control."

Another shiver ran down her spine, but Roisin managed to keep herself in control as she chuckled. Thankfully, Paul straightened up and grinned down at her, obviously knowing exactly what he was doing to her.

"Later," she said, giving him a slightly mischievous smile and a wink.

Paul chuckled in response and then started swooping her around the dance floor causing Roisin to laugh loudly. He twirled her a few times and then pulled her close to him again.

"You're happy," Roisin said, gazing up at him.

"You think I wouldn't be?" Paul asked, quirking an eyebrow at her. Roisin shrugged.

"Just because we imprinted didn't necessarily mean that you would always be happy," she replied rationally. "And well, we do at times have some epics fights."

Paul thought a few moments before smiling down at her, lowering his face until his lips ghosted just over hers.

"Yea, but I wouldn't want it any other way," he said just before he kissed her. "We're kind of a match, when you think about it." Roisin grinned.

"That we are…"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, not sorry. I felt it was only fair that I gave Embry an imprint. And really, a Spring fae makes sense.
> 
> I could have done a years-in-the-future epilogue, but for some reason that didn't feel right. This did. And as you can see, things are going well. I really just wanted to show a glimpse of how Ro and Paul are ruling together. But yea, at the end of another story. I really enjoyed writing this one. I kind of like taking universe we already know and then adding something different and seeing where it goes.
> 
> I don't have another story in the series planned at the moment. But doesn't mean it won't happen. I specifically made this so that it was a series of standalone stories so that I could come back to it when inspiration hit. But if you have ideas of other supernatural creatures that you'd like to see shoved into the Twilight universe, I'm open to suggestions!
> 
> As always, thank you for reading, following and commenting!

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so as I was finishing up 'Siren's Call', I was daydreaming (as usual) and started wondering… what if I created more stories about other creatures popping up in Forks/La Push and turned it into a series? Obviously, none of them are going to be related or in the same "universe" so to speak. I have a thing for seelies/faeries (working on my own original series involving seelies) and then as I continued daydreaming, I started getting the inklings for this story. I'm not sure why, but I really like the character of Paul as well and decided I'd take this WAY off canon and just have some fun with it.
> 
> And well, I was trying to wait until I had at least 10 chapters finished, but got to the end of Chapter 6 and decided I could wait no longer...
> 
> So, welcome to Part 2 of The Others series! Hope you enjoy!


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